Rekindled
by WanderingSoul96
Summary: The Chosen Undead awakes in the Cemetery of Ash after linking the First Flame. He will meet familiar faces as he explores the dying world of Lordran in search of the Lords of Cinder. Will he be able to change the fate of the world and avoid the oncoming darkness?
1. Rekindled

In an old cemetery covered by ash many coffins and graves were spread across the hills and natural passages. The sky was yellowish with some pieces of white mixed in, perhaps a signal of the incoming dawn or perhaps darkness. Dead trees with gnarled branches stood amidst the graves as if making company for the sorry souls of the fallen. In a far away corner of the cemetery the lid of a rocky coffin fell to the ground with a thud. A humanoid form soon emerged, slowly and lazily until it stood straight. Grains of ash fell off the shoulders and hands, leaving a grey pile on the entity´s legs.

The being gave quick breaths as it took notice of its current state. The person wore a knight´s armor, the helmet, leggings and left gauntlet made of solid steel while the right hand was covered by a leather glove. The torso was protected by a dark blue vest which hid an iron chainmail underneath and the borders and chest were decorated with golden symbols. In the waist the knight had a set of belts carefully linked together with pouches of different sizes. The head was well protected by a fully closed steel helmet with a movable visor while the neck was protected from the cold by a faded red scarf.

"Where…am I?" a young male voice spoke as the knight looked around. "The last thing I remember is pain, lots of pain. A burning sensation driving me mad…Where is the Kiln? Where is Gwyn?!" he asked stepping out of the coffin.

The warrior felt something heavy in his right hand. When he looked at it he noticed he was holding a large greatsword made of a black metal. The handle was long to allow the use of both hands during swings, the cross guards were slightly pointed upwards, a crest of sorts adorned the rain guard and two small metal pieces adorned the fuller. The blade itself was mostly black while the cutting edge was abnormally white.

The knight looked at his left hand, he was holding a large dagger. The black undulating blade was covered by tiny white thorns and he could see tiny purple bubbles forming on some of the white thorns from time to time.

"At least I got you two with me." the knight smiled as he looked at his belt, his smile faded as soon as he noticed he wasn´t carrying his most important item. "Where´s my Estus Flask?" he asked looking for the sacred recipient that literally saved his life hundreds of times.

Feeling the anxiety building he put the black dagger on his belt and placed the hand over his chest. He searched into the bottom of his soul for the flask but not only he didn´t find it but also noticed that most of his utility items were missing as well. Fortunately the bottomless box was still there but he needed to reach a bonfire to unlock it and access his remaining arsenal.

"Seems this isn´t my day, although it usually isn´t." the knight said as he tried to raise the greatsword. When he only managed to keep it on a horizontal level his face sulked even more. "Why can´t I lift it? I clearly remember being able to." he tried holding it with both hands and finally managed to keep it in a vertical position. "Weird…" he mumbled lowering the sword.

The knight remembered that he was also carrying the dagger and so released the sword and held the dark dagger in his right hand. When he tried to do a quick succession of attacks his feet failed him and he tripped, falling on the ash-covered ground.

"I´m guessing I can´t use miracles or spells either, gods must hate me. Of course they hate me, I killed them." he said standing up again.

Having no other choice the warrior stored the greatsword deep inside his soul, he couldn´t afford to lose this relic, and decided to use the dagger in the meantime even if he wasn´t skilled enough to do complex moves. As he tried to recall the name of the black blade he found a gap in his memories. His brow furrowed as he searched his memories for the name of the dagger but was ultimately unsuccessful.

"What was it called? I know it is black something. Black Talon? No. Dark Blade? Not going to call it that, she would hate me. Ah screw it, I´m going to call you Ciaran´s dagger. I´m not risking forgetting about you." he said.

Finally "ready" to start the journey the undead marched forward with weapon in hand. He went through a small valley, the graves always present on the sides. He didn´t bother to check them or the overall surroundings. The warrior didn´t even bother to check if the flooded ground was just a pool of water or a hole leading to a lake nor if there was a flying creature diving at him. He only stopped when he saw a figure standing close to a wall, clearly humanoid in form.

The person wore black robes completed with a hood and cape. They were surprisingly in good condition with just some small ripped edges. Something caught the attention of the undead knight. The man´s skin was greyish unlike the characteristic brown color common to the undead and his eyes were two dark pits of nothingness just like his own during his time in Lordran. It was clear as the First Flame that this individual was hollow.

The knight cautiously approached the man, the dagger ready to be used and the left hand relaxed for any incoming attacks. After just three steps the hollow decided it was close enough and charged at the knight with broken sword ready to impale his body. The knight caught the arm of the hollow with his free hand and easily stabbed his opponent´s guts twice, slaying the poor undead in an instant. As the warrior gazed down at the corpse by his feet he saw a shadow approaching from the left. He made a quick spin and slashed another hollow in the chest but when he performed the second spin he lost balance and fell on top of the fallen undead.

"I REALLY need to remember that I´m rusty." the warrior said as he recovered himself.

When the knight looked around he took notice of a more open space with two stone walls in the distance forming a narrow passage to the other side. A stone monument was just a few steps from where he stood, a faint light in front of it caught the knight´s attention, luring him closer like a flame attracting a moth. When he approached the source of light he recognized the form of a knight resting on a stone bowl sustained by a rocky pillar. The corpse had the same armor he was currently wearing, an old blue shield on the left hand and a straight sword on the right. In the belt the fallen knight had two flasks of different colors, one was a cold and light blue and the other a vibrant yellow with a bit of orange mixed in.

"Estus flasks, what a coincidence." the knight said pillaging both flasks. He looked at the blue one with curiosity, he had never seen this type of flask before. "The yellow one restores health but I don´t remember ever getting a blue one. Hey Oscar, do you know something…" he stopped talking when he realized that Oscar, his savior, had gone hollow a long time ago.

Sorrow filled the warrior´s heart, he had forgotten about his savior almost a day after his escape of the Asylum. Oscar was the one that actually saved the world, if it wasn´t for him then he wouldn´t have escaped and accomplished his task. After hanging both flasks at the right side of his belt he bowed to the fallen knight, thinking of him as both Oscar and another named knight of Astora.

"You have my gratitude, may you stay dead in the future." he said.

Since undead would revive again and again in an eternal cycle of rebirth the knight wished eternal rest for his fellow undead wherever he found someone he knew or got an useful item from a corpse. After realizing what just happened he clenched his fists, the hands shaking as the anger built up with such potency that even the Flame of Chaos would pale in comparison.

"Frampt, you dirty serpent. You lied to me!" he shouted to the sky with all the power he had.

The man kneeled on the ground, he slammed both fists at the stone tablets and remained on that position as he allowed himself to cry on that spot.

"Was it all for nothing?! Oscar, Siegmeyer, Solaire, Rhea, all the undead before me! Were their deaths FOR NOTHING?!" the knight raised his head and looked at his left hand. When he took off the leather glove he observed the burnt flesh, it was the same dark brown he was used to see in all hollows during his journey. "I´m still undead, not even I was freed from the curse." he said gritting his teeth.

The knight stood up and proceeded to throw random punches as he allowed the fury to take over him. After about five minutes he finally ran out of air and had to take deep breaths to recover his stamina.

" _No, something must have changed. My entire journey should have changed at least something, saved at least one life."_ his gaze fell upon his chest _,_ he saw a dark silver pendant with an intricate crest in the middle hanging over the blue vest _. "Yes! That´s it! I defeated the Four Kings and freed Artorias. I stopped Manus and the spread of the abyss. I may have not cured the undead curse but at least I stopped the spread of the dark."_ the knight thought as he clutched the silver pendant.

"But why am I here? Was I resurrected by a necromancer? I should see him if that´s the case. Another time travel portal, maybe? There should be a reason, I`m sure someone knows the answers." the knight put on the leather glove and grabbed Ciaran´s dagger from his belt.

"Flasks, ok; weapons, ok; objective, fixed; armor, in good shape. Now all I need is the good an' old bonfire." the knight said stretching his arms.

After being ambushed by three hollows, one wielding a crossbow, the knight passed through the opening between two great walls of stone. The path lead across a cliff side, the sky clearly visible from this position. In the distance he could see mountains on a lower level with a fog of sorts enveloping most of them.

"Reminds me of the Prison…" he chuckled at the memories. "I hope there isn´t another chaos demon waiting for me." the knight looked at the right.

A giant mountain stood firm and proud in the right, the wall replete with stone buildings. Some appeared to be corridors, some were pillars, others were towers and on the upper half it seemed that a stone wall was built atop the mountain.

"Reminds me of Izalith and Anor Londo. I wonder if they´re still okay." the knight shook his head. "I´m getting too distracted, where´s the bonfire?" he looked to the left and followed the path of the cliff.

Surprisingly enough he found the heavenly resting spot just a few steps away close to the rocky wall. The ground was relatively even and after a quick inspection no enemies were found hiding too close to it. The knight sat in front of the flames and left the dagger on the ground for the moment. Unlike common humans that used a bonfire to warm themselves and tell stories undead used these special bonfires to restore their health and prepare themselves for the surely hard journeys they had.

One thing caught the attention of the knight, the flame of the bonfire was meek and small, unlike the ones he used to see in the bonfires of Lordran. Thankfully it still healed his fatigue and mind and for now this was enough for him. Remembering to get the box inside his soul the knight put it down and allowed the gentle flame to lick the chest´s lock, a click came and soon the lid opened by itself.

At first the chest itself was apparently big enough to accommodate a large book or two at best but the truth was that it created a large white vortex when opened that could consume objects of any size, from keys to large battle axes and even a person if the owner wasn´t careful enough. Anything and everything could be stored inside the chest, hence the name "bottomless box". The only downside was that only the fire of the bonfire was able to unlock it and the lid would instantly close if the chest was moved too far away from the flames (a characteristic that cut the hands of many thieves in the earlier days).

The warrior pulled a shield from the magical chest, one he was very fond of and which had helped him against many foes in the past. A medium sized metal shield painted in blue with a golden crest in the middle. The Crest Shield originated from Astora, his homeland, and was particularly resistant to magic attacks. After checking all of the available weapons the knight pondered over his choices.

"What should I use? A spear? Halberd? Longsword? Greatsword? Axe? Let´s see if I can lift a claymore…" the warrior said placing his hand in the white vortex.

From the magical container he retrieved a very long sword, the blade white and thin when compared to the heavy black sword he had when he first awoke. The design was simple but effective: A common cross guard, a leather covered hilt and a sharpened blade to cut and pierce foes.

"Good, I can wield this." he said lifting the sword with just one hand, he pulled out the black greatsword from his soul and stared at the weapon with regret. "Sorry Sif but we can´t fight together for now." he said placing the greatsword inside the box.

The knight closed the chest and put it back inside his body. He stared at the frail flame of the bonfire with curiosity. A strange feeling inside told him that something was wrong with the fire but he couldn´t tell exactly what it was. His mind wasn´t at its prime and the only thing that he could think of was that the bonfire should be old and that´s why the flame had diminished so much. Feeling no need to stay there any longer the undead rose from the ground and resumed his journey.

The knight proceeded with his shield raised and sword over the shoulder. A few hollows entered his path but he blocked each and every attack and then swung the large sword to the sides to cut them in half in a single sweep. Now he stood in front of a stone gate, two torches lit on the sides as if greeting any newcomer. The undead passed through the gate and then analyzed his surroundings. It was a circular clearing that descent into a lower level. The ground was covered by old bricks but many were broken or missing. In the left he could spot many candles, graves and even a giant coffin resting by the side of a dead tree. In the horizon he could see a building on top of a hill, a tower in the left with a giant bell on the top.

"When the bell rings the fate of the undead you shall know…" he looked at the building with a frown. "Please tell me Nito didn´t wake up too." the knight said as he looked at the giant open coffin, dark memories rushed back and the undead had to shake his head to clean his mind.

As his eyes swept the area a figure caught his attention. A man wearing metal armor seemed to be kneeling in the center of the area, a spear or sword apparently by his side. From the distance it was impossible to determinate wherever he was dead or just praying and so curiosity took over the undead knight.

"Hey you! Are you okay?!" the undead asked rushing towards the figure.

When he came close enough he noticed that what he saw from afar wasn´t a spear on his side but instead a very long coiled sword, not too much different from the swords of the bonfires, impaled over his chest. A large metallic halberd was stuck diagonally on the ground by the giant´s side. Judging by the lack of response and the clearly fatal wound the undead judged him dead.

"I guess everybody isn´t as lucky as me. For Gwyn´s beard you´re huge, maybe taller than Gwyn himself." the undead said taking a step back. "I guess you won´t need this sword anymore…" he grabbed the hilt of the coiled sword but stopped before pulling the sword.

A memory flashed over the knight´s mind. The image of chaotic flames, raging eyes, familiar clothes and a cry of anger. He looked back at the corpse in front of him and then decided to leave the sword alone.

"What was I thinking? I´m not even at my best and was about to make him angry." he shook his head as he passed by the fallen warrior.

But soon enough he reached the other side of the area where another gate was erected. This time the door was closed with no sign of locks. The undead tried to push it with all his might but no matter how hard he tried the door wouldn´t budge.

"Don´t tell me he has the key." the knight of Astora looked back at the corpse of the fallen warrior, something caught his attention.

He quickly returned to the corpse and stared at the man´s back. On the left shoulder existed a small package of pitch black tendrils. They seemed to be growing out of the left side of his back, the tendrils slightly moving up and down in a regular pace. The knight bit his lips, he knew exactly the nature of the dark tendrils.

" _Abyss…he´s infected by the dark. Could it be that he killed himself to prevent it from taking him over?"_ the warrior lifted his claymore with both hands to impale the tendrils the hardest he could. "It seems I will be needing Sif more than I thought." he said to himself as he leaned back.

A geyser of black blood erupted from the fallen warrior´s back, his head jerked upwards as his hand snatched the halberd from the ground. As he stood up the tendrils exploded into a giant mass of darkness, taking over the warrior´s upper half in just seconds and expanding even more. The knight from Astora backed away as he watched the tendrils grow into enormous proportions, the front forming a snake´s head with two red glowing eyes and a wooden like claw erupting from the side.

"Crap…" the knight said as he placed the shield on his back and held the claymore with both hands.

The monster loomed over the knight with piercing eyes. It slowly approached its prey by using the lower half of its host. The beast screeched in hatred as it used the lower half of the corpse to jump high into the air and land right over the knight of Astora.

 **Notes:**

 **I enjoy watching Dark Souls´ veterans go through DS3 blind. The faces they make when they realize a connection or see a familiar face always make me smile (especially with EpicNameBro). But I didn´t want to create another "player goes into the game" story, there´s already some of them. So I thought: "What if the Chosen Undead awakened in the Cemetery of Ash?" and started from this idea. The cool thing is that it is totally possible since Lords of Cinder are called to link the fire from time to time when no one is powerful enough to do it.**

 **Of course, since the main character is "special" the story will be "slightly" different.**


	2. Second Journey

The undead knight was thrown off the cliff after being hit by the massive claw of the abyssal monster.

"You cheeeeeater!" he screamed as he fell to his death.

After resurrecting on the first and only bonfire he found the knight opened his bottomless box again. He pulled out all the scrolls he gathered over the course of his journey, some of them were yellowish, others were blue and some were reddish. He took a sip of his Estus Flask as he checked a particular yellowish scroll.

"Lighting Spear…the only lighting miracle I was able to cast in the past. The question is: can I still do it?" he asked placing his hand over the vortex of the magical container.

From inside the vortex the knight retrieved a brown talisman, the fabric tightly enveloped on itself to form a catalyst for miracles of the Gods. The warrior put down the Estus Flask and grabbed the scroll for the lighting miracle. He stood up and read the tale written on the paper as he lifted his other arm towards the sky with the hand opened. After repeating every word and focusing his energy into the talisman only a brief surge of negligible spark came out of the fabric of the catalyst.

"How is this even possible? I was told it is dependent on faith!" he sat on the ground and removed his helm, placing it on the ground.

The undead grabbed an ivory catalyst from the chest, this one was a pure whitebark branch with many ramifications on the tip. He went through a few blue scrolls but frowned when he couldn´t understand their instructions. He recognized the language but most words were foreign and their true meaning forgotten by him. After going from more advance scrolls to simpler ones the warrior finally stopped on the last one. The scrolls contained just a few words, all of them were simple and easy to understand and the instructions were very straightforward.

After reading the steps to cast the spell the undead knight focused on the energy flowing inside him. He searched for it in the depths of his soul and then channeled it towards his hand and then the wooden catalyst. When he felt the buildup he extended his arm forward and unleashed the energy in a blue bolt of soul energy. The projectile flew for some time before dissipating into nothingness.

"Great! I can cast a soul arrow! Might as well throw firebombs at the enemies, way more effective." he said storing the staff inside his soul. "Oh! Speaking of fire…" the knight said as he stared at his hand, a tiny ember ignited in his palm. The undead grinned with the result.

 **(Later)**

The knight of Astora entered the "arena" with the Crest Shield on his back and a longsword in the left side of his belt. A tiny flame shinned in his right hand while the other held a brown firebomb, a round projectile filled with explosive powder. In the right side of the belt three extra firebombs were hang, ready to be used in any moment.

The abyssal monster stood in the center of the area, the head facing the undead warrior. As soon as the knight took the third step the monster charged forward and then jumped into the air to crush the undead with its massive weight. However, this time the warrior was prepared and ran to the left and out of the reach of the monster. He quickly turned back, conjured a medium sized fireball and threw it at the dark mass of the creature. The beast screeched and contorted in pain as the flame burned the black tendrils. Losing no time the undead threw one firebomb at another spot, as soon as the projectile made contact the recipient was replaced by an explosion of flames that covered another part of the monster.

"Burn you freak!" the undead shouted as he focused his energy into another fire orb.

The undead looked at his hand, despite his efforts it was taking more time than he expected to form the orb in his hand. He looked back at the monster, the screeching diminishing as the flames faded. The knight quickly grabbed another firebomb and threw at the monster but it used the massive claw to jump to the side and avoid the projectile. The beast turned and stepped forward with mouth wide open to snatch the warrior but he ducked and fired the fire orb right under the monster´s chin. The flames licked his armor but thankfully didn´t ignite the vest. The undead sneaked away from the monster as it flailed around and screamed even more this time.

"Okay, fire orb takes way too long to cast, have two firebombs left. Gotta make them count." the knight said retreating to the closed door.

The undead stopped right in front of the closed gate and waited for the monster to come closer. When he deemed close enough he threw another firebomb at the head of the abyssal creature but it used the wooden claw to intercept the projectile which exploded between the gray fingers of the creature doing no apparent damage.

"Great! It is learning! What´s next? Speak?" the knight sidestepped a bite but was caught off guard when the head jerked to the other side, launching him to the ground.

"Forgot about….ugh! Kalameet. By the Gods you´re fast." he muttered as he stood up.

The monster moved back the giant arm, the wooden member growing in just seconds. After becoming twice as large the claw swept in an arch in front of the creature, the undead had to throw himself to the ground to avoid being hit.

"But I remember Manus…Crap!" the knight rolled when the massive hand was about to smash him into embers.

The undead rose with sword in hand, he slashed the head of the beast twice and then threw the last firebomb at the monster´s eye. As the creature squirmed in pain the warrior hit the same spot with a thrust of his blade and then dragged it to the right, cutting deep into the monster´s body. He retreated to take a couple of breaths and watch the abyssal beast flail around in agony. With one final screech it quickly retreated back into the host which was surprisingly normal again except for long openings in the chest armor from where the monster erupted. The fallen warrior kneeled on the ground and then slumped on its side.

"Second hardest abyss monster ever." the knight said placing the sword on the sheath and grabbing the golden estus flask. After two sips the knight stared at the bottle´s content. "There´s only enough for one more. And I thought that five were little." he sighed.

The knight walked towards the fallen knight and stared at the coiled sword. He didn´t know how but something was telling him that it was important. He drew the weapon out of the corpse and examined the twisted blade of the weapon. For no apparent reason It shrunk to a normal sized longsword which made it slightly lighter as a result. The undead had seen this happen before, the black greatsword he was so fond of using was actually bigger when the blacksmith forged it but shrank when in contact with his hand. He didn´t know why or how it works but it made his life way easier.

Embers started to form from the fallen knight´s body, floating in the sky as the corpse dissipated into cinders. The amount of souls wasn´t as big as he expected considering the power of the beast. Meanwhile the embers floated to the center of the arena where they landed on the ground creating an explosion of flames. When the fire subsided a bonfire with a coiled sword stuck in the middle appeared in its place. The knight approached the safe spot and sat on the ground.

"I should pack more weapon types in my soul." he said taking off his helmet. "It seems the abyss has returned, maybe someone brought me back to take care of it. I saw a shrine at the other side, maybe there´s someone there." the knight looked at the gate which was now open.

After storing the longsword and retrieving the claymore the knight packed an array of weapons inside his soul for future fights. He grabbed his golden estus flask and immersed it in the fire of the bonfire, the flames covered the recipient and slowly but surely filled it until the flask was completely full. The undead hang up the flask on his belt and proceeded to his next destination.

After going through the gate the undead saw a hill leading to a cliff with the building on top of it. There were three paths, two on the sides that followed the borders of the cliff and one in the middle with stairs leading to the building. Graves and coffins adorned the ground alongside the low grass. The knight didn´t bother to check the side paths yet, he had far more important things to do. The path lead to the entrance of the building which was an archway with two burning torches on the side. He stepped inside with shield in front of him expecting a trap or sneak attack but none came.

Once inside the first thing the knight noticed was that the interior was large and the roof far above. On the other side five thrones stood aligned in a half circle facing him, the middle one was above the others while the rest were in a slightly lower level. Every throne was supported by a large pillar with many candles lit around it to illuminate the royal chair. He stepped forward and stopped at the border to look down at the lower ground. The place was circular, the ground covered to what seemed to be ash, the sides had a set of stairs leading to the lower ground and a duo of stairs at the other side went upwards just behind the line of thrones. The warrior saw what he supposed was a bowl half buried in the middle of the ground, a person wearing black robes stood beside it waiting patiently with the hands intertwined.

The knight was about to call the person but refrained from doing so and chose to descend the stairs at the side. Once he went down a second set of stairs he reached the lower ground and went directly towards the person. Since the person was facing the other side the undead waked by the side and went in front of the person. He noticed the person was a woman, her eyes were obstructed by a grey visor of some kind, the material seemed to be made of stone and covered her eyes and forehead. Her fair blonde hair was shoulder length and was kept in place by the visor that went around the head. The maiden reminded him of Anastacia of Astora, a poor Fire Keeper that was locked underneath Firelink Shrine but they were obviously not the same person. When no response came from the woman he decided to take initiative.

"Uh…excuse me." he said unsure.

"Welcome to the bonfire un-dead?" she hesitated on the last word. Her voice was soothing, calm and the knight thought it was perhaps one of the most beautiful he ever heard in his journey.

"Yes, I´m an undead. My name is Marcus of Astora." the knight said.

The maiden fondled her fingers, she seemed to be anxious or nervous. She looked down at Marcus´s chest despite the fact her eyes were covered, her mouth opened a bit and she seemed to want to say something but the words remained inside.

"Are you okay?" Marcus said as he put the Crest Shield on his back.

"I´m…I´m fine. I´m a fire keeper. I tend to the flame, and tend to thee." the Fire Keeper bowed deeply to the knight.

Marcus raised a brow, "This may sound rude but do you have a name?" he asked. All the Fire Keepers he met had a name.

The Fire Keeper remained silent much to the knight´s dismay. He knew that an undead could become a Fire Keeper so he deduced she forgot her own name. Usually an undead would feel uncomfortable with the idea of not remembering the past so the knight decided to give up on the topic for the moment. Marcus turned away from the maiden and looked at the thrones, each of them was made of stone and was slightly too large for a normal sized human. The one in the right, however, was enormous and was probably designed for a giant.

"Five…not four." the knight mumbled. "Where am I?" he asked turning to the maiden.

"This is Firelink Shrine where the L-Lords gather to link the fading Flame." the maiden answered still uneasy.

"This is not Firelink Shrine." the knight quickly responded.

"Thi-this is Firelink Shrine, it has been for centuries." the Fire Keeper insisted.

"Centuries?" Marcus tilted his head to the side.

"Yes…" the maiden answered.

The knight closed his eyes as he tried to understand the situation. He awakened in a cemetery which was clearly overcrowded, this was supposedly Firelink Shrine and these "Lords" were necessary to link the Fire. And judging by the time span this has been done multiple times before. He bit his lips, he didn´t like the sound of it.

"So where are the Lords?" he asked as he looked at the empty thrones, except for one which was occupied by a tiny man.

"The Lords have left their thrones, and must be deliver'd to them. To this end, I am at thy side." the maiden answered, her voice more controlled now.

"Just to clarify: what makes a person a Lord?" Marcus asked.

"When a person possess a soul powerful enough to link the First Flame and is successful this person receives the title of Lord of Cinder." the Fire Keeper answered.

"Like Gwyn." Marcus said.

"Yes." the maiden replied.

" _So I´m a Lord of Cinder now? Go figure, do I have a throne or statue in my name? Maybe one of those is mine."_ he thought looking at each throne. "Do you know where the Lords went?" he asked.

"They have left a long time ago. Produce the coiled sword at the bonfire. It will lead thee to the land of the Lords. To Lothric, where the homes of lords converge." the Fire Keeper answered while pointing to the half-buried bowl in the center of the floor.

Marcus nodded as he searched inside his soul for the coiled sword he found minutes ago. He lifted and impaled it in the middle of the bowl. As soon as the blade made contact a flame ignited and the bowl and sword fused to become a bonfire. But the knight didn´t intend to leave yet, he wanted to ask some more questions and talk with the midget in one of the thrones. As he scanned the surrounding area he saw a man sitting on the beginning of the stairs on the right. The undead put the claymore on the sheath on his belt and approached the man.

When he got closer he noticed the man wore leather armor with a metal pad on the left shoulder, metal gauntlet on the left hand and knee pads. A wine colored cape adorned his shoulders and it was possible to see the handle of a large sword on his back. His head was covered by chain mail, the face was young but the somber expression hinted at a hard and unsuccessful life.

"Ahhh, another one, roused from the sleep of death? Well, you're not alone. We Unkindled are worthless. Can't even die right. Gives me conniptions." the man grunted, his voice was tired and devoid of hope.

"Unkindled?" the knight asked.

"Uh? Never heard about the unkindled? How long have you been sleeping? We the unkindled are losers, scum, incompetent. While those great kings are true legends we are just undead who can´t even fulfill a simple task. The ones who link the fire are champions, the rest? Worthless." the man shook his head.

" _Oh Gods another crestfallen warrior, just what I needed to keep my morale high. I guess this is no different from my Shrine after all."_ Marcus thought _._

"And they'd have us seek the Lords of Cinder, and return them to their moulding thrones. But we're talking true legends with the mettle to link the fire. We're not fit to lick their boots. Don't you think?" the crestfallen man chuckled in a devilish manner.

"Who knows? I bet some of them were homeless naked idiots when they first started. What says that we can´t reach the same level as them if we try hard enough?" Marcus answered as he shrugged.

The man chuckled at the answer, "No my friend. They are way out of our league, I know what I´m talking about." the man looked down.

"That´s your opinion. By the way, I`m Marcus of Astora." the knight said.

"Hawkwood." the crestfallen said without looking up.

" _I guess he won´t talk anymore."_ Marcus thought as he sighed.

The knight climbed the left set of staircases that led to the thrones. He stopped behind the first one and read the inscription on the stone: " _Aldrich, Saint of the Deep."_

" _Deep? Is it related to water? The sea, maybe? If it´s water then maybe he doesn´t like fire but then why would he link the First Flame in the first place? Or maybe he tried to extinguish it and linked by accident? I don´t know, I´m sure I will discover sooner or later."_ the knight thought.

He went to the next one, " _Ludleth the Exiled."._

This throne, however, was occupied and so the undead decided to chat a bit with this person. He jumped on the platform and walked in front of the throne. A small man sat on the rocky chair. His torso was covered by an old brown cloth, leaving the left side of the burnt chest exposed. His legs were covered by a dark blue robes with two golden lines of symbols in the middle. Atop of his bald head rested a golden crown.

"Oh! Who might thou be?" Ludleth asked quite surprised.

"I´m Marcus of Astora, an undead." the knight answered. Marcus was still not sure if he should spread the word that he´s actually a Lord of Cinder. Some people might try to kill him for his souls or to force him back to the shrine. "Are you Ludleth?" he asked.

"Yes, I´m Ludleth of Courland. Look not in bewilderment as I say… I linked the fire long ago, becoming a Lord of Cinder. If substantiation be thy want, set thine eyes upon my charred corse. This sad cadav'r. No need to be coy, have a closer look." the midget said gesturing at his corpse.

"Hard to believe you linked the fire. But I have no proof you´re not a Lord of Cinder as well so I guess I will have to believe you on this one." Marcus crossed his arms. "May I ask a question?" he asked.

"Of course." Ludleth said.

"If we link the First Flame it will keep the Dark at bay, is that right?" the knight asked.

"Certainly, when the First Flame is strong and healthy the Dark retreats and is subdued for as long as the First Flame burns. Dost thou see the thrones in the shrine? Five thrones will take five Lords, as kindling for the linking of the Fire. The First Flame is quickly fading and must be linked to preserve this world. But the other lords refused their duty and must be brought back to save this world." Ludleth explained.

"Let me guess, I will have to track them down, won´t I?" Marcus asked.

"The Unkindled are awakened for this task, we rely on them in these times of need. Usually only one new Lord is necessary but in the absence of one the Lords of Cinder are awakened in their stead. However, sometimes they also refuse their duty and in this scenario we call upon the Unkindled to find them." the small man explained.

" _Backup of the backup. No wonder he feels like trash, the Unkindled are the last resort."_ Marcus looked down at Hawkwood. "Fine! I will bring them back in no time!" the knight snapped his fingers.

Ludleth was taken back by the resolve of the undead, "Thou seem pretty confident, I have never seen an Unkindled accept the task as fast as thee." he said.

Marcus smiled, "I`m an undead, I can hit my head on a rock until it breaks. Besides, I don´t want to see this world engulfed by darkness." he told.

"A commendable way of thinking. But still, each Lord possess great strength. Bringing them back will be no easy task." Ludleth warned.

"They linked the Fire once, right? There should be a reason why they refused this time. Maybe I can convince them to go back to the Shrine." the undead stated hopeful.

"Bring them back…alive?" the small man felt something in his throat. This was the first time someone suggested this plan.

"It´s worth the attempt, saves a lot of time. Worst case scenario I just need to kill them and bring back their souls." Marcus shrugged as he stepped on the stairs and walked to an upper floor.

The knight gazed at the main throne in silence, it was built on a higher ground when compared to the others and the base of the chair was surrounded by solidified lava. The undead walked behind the throne and read the inscription: " _Holy King Lothric- Last Hope of his line."._

" _Wasn´t Lothric the name of the kingdom? I guess he´s currently the most powerful of lords or at least the most recent one. In any case I will have to be careful."_ he thought going to the next throne.

The next throne was surprisingly small and simple. It was no bigger than Ludleth´s and it lacked any special decorations on the surface or even arm rests. A ragged black cloth covered the top of the throne for no apparent reason. The undead read the description: " _Watchers of the Abyss."_

" _Watchers of the Abyss? Are they warriors of the abyss or the ones who fight against the abyss?"_ the knight thought stepping on the platform.

Marcus noticed the group of greatswords resting on both sides of the throne. He grabbed one of them to observe the details. The cross guards were pointed upwards, the blade was a bit rusted and scorched but it was clear that it was once white and shinny. The rain guard contained a black piece of iron that covered the middle of the blade and went up to one third of the size of the blade.

" _They don´t look like darkwraiths´ swords, they use thick longswords made of dark metal and this one is white. Artorias was called the Abyss Walker while this lord is called Abyss Watchers. Wait, watchers? But there´s only one throne! There´s like…six swords here. I don´t like the sound of this…"_ Marcus thought shaking his head. " _My only hope is that they´re actually followers of Artorias, if this is the case I´m sure they will be glad to return to the Shrine…unless…"_ the image of a broken knight flashed through the undead´s mind. " _I can only hope."_ the warrior gulped as he put back the greatsword together with the others.

The warrior approached the last throne, the biggest of them all. He read the inscription: " _Yhorm the Giant, of the Profane Capital"_

" _Just as I feared…a Giant Lord. Huh! At least one of them became a Lord, I wasn´t fond of them being just slaves. I wonder if the blacksmith and Gough are still alive. How long they live anyway? I can only hope he doesn´t has a giant army or giant archers, the silver knights with great bows were already a big enough problem."_ Marcus shivered at the memories.

Indignation struck the undead like a Dragon´s Tooth´ strike. _"No throne for me and no sign of statue…Does nobody care if I defeated the Lords by my own and linked the Fire?! Did it become a yearly ritual?! Do I need to do it with my bare hands and no armor and items for them to build a throne for me?!"_ the knightpunched the wall on theleft _,_ truth dawned upon him like a boulder thrown by a giant. _"I linked the First Flame because I thought it would cure the curse, my curse, and cast away the dark because I was afraid of it. I didn´t save my friends, I didn´t save anybody. I don´t deserve a throne…only a crown of arrogance."_ the knight remained still for a few minutes until he decided to move own.

When the knight approached the bonfire to teleport to his next location a noise echoed in the right. He stopped to listen as the familiar sound hit again and then again a moment later. The undead knew that type of sound, it was the hammering of a blacksmith and the rhythm felt familiar and comforting. When he turned his head to find the source of the sound he couldn´t believe his own eyes.

"It can´t be…" Marcus said as he walked towards the direction of the sound.

Just underneath the entrance of the shrine existed a hallway that lead to another part of the building. In the end of the passage a figure sat on a chair as the person lifted and brought down a hammer onto a weapon, creating sparks of fire as a result. The man had a long white beard that blended with his hair, the hairy chest was filled with muscles and an occasional burn mark and the arms would make any soldier envious. The knight of Astora found himself dashing towards the blacksmith, his happiness increasing with every step. When he finally reached the muscular figure he stopped to take quick breaths, prompting the smith to look at him with a smile.

"Hey friend you don´t need to run around, I´m not going anywhere." the older man chuckled, his voice was hoarse but livid.

"Andre? Andre of Astora?!" the knight exclaimed lifting his head.

"That´s my name." the smith replied.

"How are you still sane old man! You don´t know how happy I am to see you!" Marcus said, he could embrace the blacksmith right there on that instant but remembered that Andre wasn´t the type for hugs.

"Sorry pal but do I know y´?" Andre asked.

"Don´t play with me Andre! I know you remember me! I gave you four embers back in the day. The large ember, the very large one, the divine one and the big divine one." Marcus said counting his fingers.

The smith rubbed his beard as he tried to remember. "Divine Ember…in the Parish?" he looked back at the knight.

"Yes! You also repaired my weapons, I bet you didn´t forget about this one." the knight placed a hand on his chest and retrieved the heavy greatsword he had when he awakened. He placed it on the anvil in front of Andre.

Andre grabbed the weapon by the handle and brought it closer to see the details more easily. He noticed how the blade reflected the light of the candles perfectly creating a faint blue glow on the surface. The smith also analyzed the details of the crest on the rain guard and the ornaments across the blade itself. He smiled, hours of work put into a single weapon produced fond memories in the mind of the blacksmith. Unique weapons in particular were joyous occasions for the blacksmith who was proud of working with them, be it to repair or reinforce.

"Ah! I remember this one! I have seen a couple of copies before but this one is different, it has much more details and the blade is more refined. It is really you! By the Gods how much time has it been?" Andre gave back the greatsword with a grin on his face.

"I don´t know either, I was hoping you could give me an idea." Marcus replied storing the blade in his soul.

Andre rubbed his beard, "Hard to tell, I wasn´t always the blacksmith, had to take a break or two y´ know? Hahaha! But I asked them each time I got back so…100 cycles? Maybe more actually." the smith continued to rub his beard.

"One hundred cycles?! I have been…" Marcus restrained himself. "I feel old…" his shoulders fell.

Andre chuckled, "Don´t feel so bad. Like they say: they don´t make things like they used to anymore. There was a time when weapons didn´t last a day, go figure what was going on in the head of those blacksmiths." he faked a hit on his head with the hammer.

Marcus laughed, "It was nice meeting you again." he offered his hand for a handshake.

"Same." Andre took the hand and shook it once. "I guess y´ already know the deal." he said.

"Yeah, weapons can be reinforced or changed, need titanite to improve and special titanite for changed weapons. Weapons can break and need to be repaired from time to time and you will need special embers to change stuff. Did I miss anything?" the knight asked.

"Things are a bit different this time around. You will need special gems to modify a weapon, once changed you only need regular titanite. If you sit on a bonfire it will restore them but not repair, if you know what I mean. Instead of embers I will need coals, though they both are usually inside those square boxes. I have also expanded my services, now I can reinforce you Estus Flasks with Estus Shards, those little fragments of flasks, so they can store more estus. Can´t go wrong with Estus." Andre told.

Marcus was processing all the new changes, once everything was assimilated he remembered to ask one more question. "What´s the deal with the Blue Flask?" he pointed to the Blue Estus Flask on his belt.

"Ah…I forgot you didn´t have one of these back in the day. The blue one restore focus, you need it to cast spells and perform other difficulty stunts. Not much of use to you, I suppose." Andre answered. "Which reminds me, I can also change how much estus each can store. If you want four golden sips, four blue sips or any combination speak to me." he pointed to himself.

Marcus gave the smith both flasks "Four golden sips" he ordered.

As the old man searched for his tools behind him the undead looked around and saw a multitude of weapons resting on a small pillar behind the smith, a bunch candles were lit on top of it to provide some light.

"Are they for sale?" Marcus asked pointing for the weapons.

Andre continued to search for the appropriate tools with his back turned to the knight. "No, I need to repair these and give them back to those Unkindled. I don´t sell anymore, if you want something go speak to the lady over there." Andre pointed behind him.

Marcus looked behind himself and saw a person in the left side of the hall. He nodded and went towards this "lady". When he came face to face with the vendor he took noticed of the red robes and hood which were heavily covered by ash, somehow the dirt didn´t seem to bother the woman as she wasn´t attempting to clean them. Her eyes were covered by an old golden mask leaving only her wrinkled mouth and cheeks exposed. The old lady sat on a simple chair, behind her existed half a dozen small graves while many pots and candle supports were scattered around the ground by her feet.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, undead knight. I am but a humble handmaiden of the shrine. Weapons, armor, trinkets, and spells...I've lots of little things to ease the burden of a weary traveler...And yes, I'm Undead, too, but not so charitable as to give my goods away. Undead knight, fetch souls, and bring them to me. As is thy wont, no?" the woman chuckled, her voice languid but steady.

" _There goes the evil chuckle, at least she isn´t as creepy as that moss lady in the sewer. Gods she was creepier than Oswald."_ Marcus thought. "So what are you selling?" he asked.

After going through all the inventory the handmaid had at her disposition the knight found something he didn´t recognize. It was a small object, no longer than 15 cm and not much large. The thing was black and resembled a torso without hands with a small ball on top of it. The "chest" contained small cracks on the surface which burned weakly but didn´t fade nor spread across the object.

"What is this?" the knight of Astora asked.

"You don´t know? Are you already going hollow? This is an ember, used to briefly give strength to an Unkindled. It also strengths the bond between worlds so you can summon a little help from other Unkindled. But as many good things it also has a flaw: it may attract those who are more than willing to kill you for the ember." the maiden explained.

" _Basically humanity but…the reverse? Instead of the Dark Soul they are using regular flames to get strength?"_ the undead thought. "And the key I saw earlier?" he asked.

"Opens the Tower of the Shrine, 20.000 souls for it." the handmaid answered.

The warrior coughed, "What did you bury in that tower?! Gwyn´s sword? No thank you I´m going to pass this one." Marcus waved his hand dismissively.

"Knight of yore, if my wares are not to thy satisfaction, bring me umbral ash. With ash, I'll fashion new wares. Is it not our sorry fate, to sup on death?" the old woman spoke.

"Umbral Ash? Where do I get it?" Marcus asked.

"From deceased Unkindled. Don´t give me that look, I´m not saying you need to kill them. With a bit of luck you may find it on the corpses along the road. Usually the only remaining part is the hand with the ash on it, you will know when you see it." the handmaid said chuckling.

The undead knight retrieved his flasks from Andre and then returned to the bonfire. He sat in front of it and extended his hand into the flames in an attempt to use the souls he earned until now to empower himself. When nothing happened he shook his hand a bit and grunted in frustration. The Fire Keeper noticed the discomfort of the knight and walked closer to him:

"Is something wrong?" she asked leaning forward.

"Can´t make the bonfire infuse the souls in my body." Marcus mumbled irritated as he shook the hand once again.

The Fire Keeper covered her mouth to avoid a small chuckle from coming out. "The bonfires no longer possess such power, they have lost it a long time ago. I can provide thee with such ability…" she said.

The knight looked at her with a brow raised, "So now only a Fire Keeper can infuse souls into another being?" he asked.

"Yes, my sir." the maiden answered.

" _Oh great! Now I will have to go back to the Shrine every time! Although it doesn´t hurt to return once in a while…to have a place you can call home…"_ the knight thought as he stood up and looked at the Fire Keeper. "How is it done?" he asked.

"Stretch thy hand." the maiden instructed.

The warrior obeyed and extended his right hand with the palm facing up. The Fire Keeper covered the hand with her own, a white glow covered both hands as the link between Fire Keeper and undead was established.

"What is the quality thou wish to improve?." the maiden asked.

Marcus thought for a moment, all of his main skills were severely diminished in comparison when he first fought Gwyn in the Kiln. His strength wasn´t that bad but his mind had suffered to the point he could only understand Soul Arrow and the Heal Miracle. However, these skills weren´t essential for now and so he decided to balance another ability.

"I want to be more skilled with weapons, more nimble with them if you know what I mean." Marcus requested.

"Very well…Let these souls, withdrawn from their vessels. Manifestations of disparity. Elucidated by fire. Burrow deep within me, retreating to a darkness beyond the reach of flame. Let them assume a new master. Inhabiting…" the maiden stopped as she found trouble saying the next word. After a moment she gulped and continued the rite. "...inhabiting a new vessel, casting themselves upon new forms." she finished retreating her hand.

"Thanks _."_ the knight said and then turned to the bonfire. _"She seems hesitant, I wonder if it´s because she´s timid, wouldn´t be the first one."_ Marcus thought as he stretched his hand over the fire.

Marcus didn´t know how Lothric looked like nor the exact location he should teleport so he decided to instead focus on the name. " _Lothric, point of convergence of the homes of the Lords of Cinder."_ he thought.

The fire emanated a yellowish fog that spread around the bonfire and engulfed the knight. After it dissipated the undead was no longer there.

 **Notes:**

 **Marcus is a reference to EpicNameBro (Marcus), he´s a youtuber famous for his Dark Souls videos.**

 **The first thing I thought when I entered DS3´s Firelink Shrine was that it wasn´t the same shrine from the first game.**

 **Andre was referring to Dark Souls 2 weapons´ durability. The durability in DS2 was so bad that 60 points were equivalent to 10 or 15 in DS1. In DS3 the weapons are far more durable but not as much as DS1.**

 **Marcus´ comment about the key´s price is a reference to the Crest of Artorias from DS1. It costs 20.000 and is used to open a gate to "Artorias grave" where Sif lives.**


	3. Reflections

**(High Wall of Lothric)**

Marcus blocked the attack of a hollow elite knight with his shield, sidestepped the next blow from the hollow´s straight sword and then quickly ducked to avoid a horizontal slash that was aimed at his neck.

"I get it, you´re an elite knight, oh gods!" Marcus said blocking another attack with his claymore.

They were on one of the walls of the castle, the left was blocked by a brick wall and the right contained a set of stairs that led to a lower level of the wall. The sky was yellowish with some tint of grey and white and the air felt slightly heavy. Marcus´s opponent wore a full plate armor made of steel with a faded red vest over the torso and a ragged cape of the same color. Surprisingly enough despite the current state of the world the equipment was only slightly worn and still possessed most of its original qualities.

Marcus had defeated the previous hollows on the wall fairly easily, none of them had skills or equipment to match his abilities (even though they were heavily diminished). The only problem he had was when he faced another abyssal creature on the way, a smaller version of the one he faced in the arena before the new Firelink Shrine. This hollow, however, was on a totally different level. Not only his equipment was still mostly intact but his movements were fluid with little to no opening between them. If the knight of Astora was to judge, the once proud knight was certainly on par with the silver knights of Gwyn.

The Lord of Cinder sidestepped another vertical slash but the hollow bashed him with his iron shield. Marcus staggered, he didn´t expect such kind of attack from his foe. The hollow went for a stab but the knight parried the attack with his shield and then stabbed the mindless warrior in the gap just under the arm. Blood sprayed out as he took of the sword and allowed the hollow to fall on the ground. The knight from Astora walked back as he sheathed the weapon and took a quick sip from his estus flask.

" _He was tough!"_ the knight thought as he felt the effect of the golden substance.

As the Lord of Cinder lowered his arm he was met with the imposing figure of the hollow knight coming after him. He instinctively blocked the attack with his shield and used the opportunity to put the flask back on his belt and grab the claymore. The knight ducked under a swing and then used his Crest Shield to bash his enemy on the right arm. The attack made contact with the hollow´s hand forcing him to release the longsword. Marcus took the chance to release his own sword and then jump forward to throw them both to the ground. He quickly grabbed Ciaran´s dagger from his belt and used it to stab the knight in the head, the blade sunk deep inside the hollow´s visor, piercing the aged flesh of the mindless man. The mindless warrior tried to lift his arms in an attempt to survive but perished once Marcus twisted the long dagger.

As Marcus stood up he looked at the lifeless form of the hollow. He took a moment to catch his breath and then sigh. "Have to be wary of them, if there´s three I stand no chance." he put the dagger back on the belt and looked around the ground in search of something.

The undead found what he was searching for: the steel sword from the Hollow Knight. It was a well-made longsword with a golden pommel and cross-guard, the latter being slightly curved upwards. He transformed the sword into its soul form and then stored it inside his body for later use. After picking his own sword from the ground the knight from Astora marched on to continue his journey.

" _Lothric´s knight order. I wonder if they use other weapons…"_ Marcus thought as he pressed on.

 **(Later)**

Marcus stared through a locked cell door. He played with the key in his hands, throwing it from one to another as he weighed his options: to open or not to open? At the other side sat a man with casual clothing and a weird elongated blue hood. He was the current prisoner of the small cell and his hopes and freedom remained on Marcus´ hands. The prisoner only had a pack of clothes to work as a makeshift bed and an opening on the side to use as toilet. If a guard was responsible for feeding him, he was probably dead or hollow by the time the knight reached the cell.

Usually the knight from Astora would be willing to help whoever he found in his journey but ever since he freed the infamous Lautrec of Carim the knight became wary of imprisoned men and their potential danger to his friends and acquaintances. If he unlocked this door who could know if he would go on a killing spree or be helpful and friendly? The fate of Andre, Ludleth, the Nameless Fire Keeper and other bystanders was on his hands and he had to decide by himself.

" _He was locked for a reason and even if I ask him what guarantee I have that he´s telling the truth? But on the other hand I was locked in a cell at the very beginning."_ Marcus thought.

The warrior was too immersed in his own thoughts to notice the approach of the prisoner. The clearly smaller man approached the iron bars but did not try to snatch the keys from Marcus´s hands. Instead the hooded man simply looked at the knight´s helm, expectancy clear on the eyes.

"You're no jailer are you?" the prisoner asked, judging by the voice he was in his late thirties.

Marcus instinctively gave a step back and clutched the key in his left hand. " _How long he was standing there?!"_ he thought but kept his posture. "No, I´m no jailer. I´m Marcus, from Astora." he said looking at the prisoner´s hands and face.

"The noble land? Hm? I thought it was…never mind…Judging by the bell, you must be some of that unkindled ash." the man spoke hopeful.

The warrior remained silent and immobile for a second longer than he initially wanted. Perhaps it was a faint sense of injured pride or maybe anger but he quickly swayed it aside and focused on the problem at hand.

"I´m undead, and you…" Marcus allowed the man to introduce himself.

"I am Greirat of the Undead Settlement. I…uh. Could you do a favor for me?" Greirat clasped his hands together.

"Before you ask anything. Why were you locked here?" Marcus asked.

Greirat sighed as he lowered his head, "I know, I understand. You don´t trust me. They caught me for trying to steal a sack of potatoes. I-I was going to give it to a kid, I-I swear. I´m no murderer or something like that." the prisoner said.

The knight was curious and intrigued, the way Greirat spoke hinted lack of confidence and he didn´t recognize any malice or mystery in his voice (traits he often found in Carim´s people). Of course, looks could be deceiving but he at least was inclined to hear the request of the man.

"What do you need?" the knight asked, exhaustion from overthinking weighing on his head.

The hooded man grabbed something from his back pocket. It was a ring with a large oval-shaped dark blue gem on top of it and silver surrounding the base of the jewel. Marcus instantly recognized the ring, it was a Blue Tearstone Ring, one of the first enchanted rings he found during his journey in Lodran.

" _Why is he carrying this useless ring? I will never understand the creator of this thing, reinforce your body when you are near death? And what´s the deal? You´re one hit away from death anyway, it doesn´t increase your defense to the point of surviving an average stab or improve your stamina in any way."_ the knight thought.

"Below the High Wall is a musty little town. Not the home of any lord, just a very old settlement of Undead. An old woman, Loretta, lives there. Please give her this ring." Greirat asked as he extended his hand with the ring on it.

The knight wondered if this Loretta was his wife or mother and if she was still sane. Nonetheless he grabbed the ring. "How will I know who is Loretta?" he asked.

"She always has this peculiar bone with her, it is an-an habit she developed years ago. The bo-bone should be old and full of holes by now, even with all her care and caution." the prisoner explained.

"What a weird habit." Marcus commented as he stored the ring inside his soul. "I will give it to her. I´m kinda exploring the world right now so paying a visit to this town is no problem." he looked at the key in his hand. "Now, I could unlock the door for you but you have to make me a promise." Marcus looked back at the prisoner.

"O-okay, what kind of promise?" Greirat asked slightly afraid of the cost.

"Don´t kill or steal from anyone in Firelink Shrine. And gods help you if you kick me from a cliff. Also, if you break this promise I will go to the ends of the world to kill you and it won´t be pretty." the warrior said with a dark and serious tone, making him sound 10 years older.

The thief gulped, "The-these are reasonable conditions. I-I-I promise I won´t steal or kill from anyone in the shrine or kick you from a cliff." he said shivering.

"Good, glad we´re clear on that." Marcus said happier as he unlocked the door. "Sorry for the intimidation, last guy I freed killed a friend of mine, I need to be more careful with people on cells." he said.

"I see…I should be going now." the thief looked back at the cell one last time.

"There´s a bonfire on the tower behind me, on the roof. The way is clear without any undead so you´re free to go. Don´t worry, I won´t forget about the ring." Marcus pointed behind him.

"Th-thank you. If you do this for me, I will be sure to repay you in kind. I-I may be a petty thief but I´ve more wits than most royalty." the hooded man said.

"So you´re going to steal to give it to me? Is that what are you saying?" the knight asked leaning forward.

"Mo-mo-most people are already dead or hollow, the-they won´t miss their belongings, will they?" Greirat argued with his hands open in a defensive gesture.

"Actually…many hollows guard their precious items and the survivors tend to protect their families´ graves. So yes, they will miss the items. But I guess that if it´s from the hollows there´s no problem, at least in most cases. If you happen to steal or collect something important I will just buy from you anyway. Although I do advice you to use your head while exploring. You don´t want a giant creature or a mob after you, do you?" Marcus shrugged.

"I-I will follow your advice." Greirat stuttered.

 **(Later)**

Marcus sat on the ground with his back resting on a giant iron door. His mail had three holes where the knights of Lothric pierced him with their long spears and swords. The corpses of three hollow knights laid on front of him. One had a deformed helm, the result of a blunt strike from the knight´s mace. The second had his chest plate smashed with a hole in the chainmail underneath it and the last had all the injuries from the first two coupled with a cut on the neck, underarm and a dagger stuck on the unprotect forehead since the visor was lifted.

"What…the heck! Were they guarding?!" the knight of Astora breathed heavily.

The undead´s flask was completely empty, he had spent all his remaining sips in the last battle and was only alive because the wound he received was a non-lethal stab after drinking for the last time. The closest bonfire was on the first tower but going back there meant the possible resurrection of all the hollows he faced until now which he was NOT fond of fighting.

"Better get going, need to find them before they get too far away." the knight grunted as he mustered the strength to stand up.

With great difficulty the Chosen Undead pushed the giant door with all his might, the injuries stung but he pressed on determined to continue forward.

"The strength…of an undead…is his willpower!" he gritted his teeth as he finally opened the door.

Taking a moment to regain his breath the undead looked around the dark room. The ceiling was high above, the room was mostly rectangular with some pillars on the sides to sustain the heavy weight of the roof. An old red carped was outstretched from the door to the other side of the room, leading to what looked like the base of a balcony.

The knight narrowed his eyes, he noticed a person sitting on a chair at the other side, a small lantern was placed on the ground to give light to the owner of the chair. At the sides a pillar on each side sustained a metal support with a small flame burning on it, providing more light to the area.

The Chosen Undead kept his shield in front of him as he cautiously walked towards the other side of the room. He looked from time to time at the balcony to see if someone was going to jump down and fight him just like in Anor Londo but fortunately nothing happened. When he was a step or two away from the figure on the chair he noticed this person wore a set of robes very similar to the one the handmaid of the shrine used except it was black instead of red.

"Ahh, the waiting has been long…" the figure on the chair spoke, it was an old woman with a still livid voice. She spoke with relief at first but then her face twisted with confusion. "Pardon me, but what is your name?" she asked.

" _Marcus, the first undead to link the fire."_ Marcus thought.

"Marcus of Astora, an undead." he said giving a slight bow to show respect.

The old lady looked at Marcus with curiosity, "Tell me something, Marcus of Astora." she removed her hood and stared at him. "Are you one of them?" she asked.

"One of them? Can you be more specific? There´s plenty of beings, orders and such in this world." the knight asked.

"Forgive my rudeness, let me rephrase that. Are you a Lord of Cinder?" the old lady asked.

" _Shit."_ was all that passed through the knight´s head.

"Where do you get that idea? If I were a Lord I would have a throne just for me, books about my feats and lots of pictures." Marcus sighed inside his own mind but kept his voice neutral.

"I can sense a flame inside your body, it is tiny and meek but persistent. Very much like the First Flame or…rather…a small piece of it. Only those who linked the Fire and the Gods have this power." the lady explained.

"Oh so that´s how you know…" Marcus rubbed the base of his helm. "I guess I can´t hide it anymore. Yes, I´m a Lord of Cinder." the knight said nonchalant _"…as if that makes any difference, as far as I know only Andre is aware of this."_ he thought feeling more miserable than when he was at the bottom of Blightown.

"Remarkable, I thought they were the only ones. Oh! Forgive me, I didn´t introduce myself. I´m Emma, high priestess of Lothric. It is an honor to meet you." she stood up and made a proper bow to show respect. "Tell me, Marcus of Astora, what is your purpose here?" she asked.

"I´m looking for the Lords of Cinder to link the First Flame again. I guess…" the knight rubbed the back of his head.

"Wouldn´t it be better to wait at the Shrine and let the Unkindled fulfill their role?" Emma suggested.

"For 3 reasons: One: I lost like 90% of my power when I woke up at that cemetery, I need to get back in shape. Two: I want to explore this world and see what has changed. Three: It seems the abyss is spreading, I need to take care of it." the warrior counted his fingers.

"I see…" the old lady looked at the faded carpet as if regretting something.

"Are you okay?" Marcus placed his hand over her shoulder.

"Yes, I´m fine. I was just thinking about the past…" Emma said sincerely.

"I know this may sound weird but I have a favor to ask: Keep my identity a secret, okay?" the knight asked.

"Don´t you want to be treated as a Lord? You deserve this much, even in your current state. To link the Fire is no easy task, a sacrifice worth of praise." Emma retorted.

Marcus gave a heartful laugh that echoed across the entire room. "Sure it isn´t. Sometimes I wonder how I didn´t hollow until now. But no…the reason I want to keep this a secret is to avoid people dragging me to the Shrine every time I go outside." he said.

"I understand." the priestess nodded, "Your secret is safe and sound. But allow me to give you something before your departure." Emma took a ring from her finger and offered to the knight.

" _I´m getting too many rings in a short amount of time. I know I´m a Lord but I don´t think I´m ready for marriage."_ Marcus thought as he grabbed the ring.

The borders of the crest of the ring were made of gold. The center was red with the image of a white nurse holding what looked like to be an infant clad in robes. The knight of Astora looked at the figure on the ring and then at the high priestess in front of him. There was some similarity between the two but he doubted this ring was specifically made for just one person.

"And this ring…" the undead said expecting to hear the effect of the ring.

"This ring strengthens your connection with the gods and therefore your miracles. Use it wherever you find yourself in danger." Emma answered as she sat on the chair again.

"Oh! Thanks. I will surely need it. I have a question, though. Do you know where the other lords went?" the undead asked.

"They have left, gone. To their churning homes, converging at the base of this castle. Head to the bottom of the High Wall at the other side of the castle. Forge on through the great gate, and raise this banner to proceed." the priestess summoned a banner from inside her soul.

The banner was old, ragged and rugged. However, despite the current state of the material it was still possible to see the image of a ring in the center of the fabric, almost as if it was a black chain amidst a white beach. The object itself was about one and half meter long and the knight wonder why it was so small. Marcus took the banner and transformed it into a soul before storing it inside his body.

The undead looked upwards and behind the high priestess. He had noticed before the conversation that there was a ladder behind the chair, over the statue of a kneeling knight. The ladder itself was retracted, stopping anyone from using it.

"Where does that ladder leads?" Marcus asked pointing at above Emma´s head.

The old lady shifted uncomfortable on the chair, she looked back at the knight with such a downcast look that Marcus was taken back by such change of attitude. It was almost as if she regretted what was behind her and was hesitant on sharing it with anybody else.

"I will speak frankly with you, Marcus of Astora. You´re not ready to go there, yet." Emma said.

"Prince Lothric, right?" the knight folded his arms in front of him.

The old lady widened her eyes but recovered after just a moment. "Yes. Please, search for the other lords first. When you´re done I will personally summon you here." Emma clasped her hands together and begged.

Marcus closed his eyes, his mind was still a bit jumbled and he couldn´t think clearly like in his prime but he felt that there was a connection between Lothric and Emma. "Fine, he must be the toughest then. I will go after the others and then…wait. Am I missing something?" the knight scratched the back of his helm which had no effect at all.

"Hm? I don´t think so. You may proceed through the door and go forth. You will find the great gate and then you may use the banner to proceed." Emma said.

"I swear there was something I needed to ask. I guess I will remember it later if it´s important. Goodbye Emma." Marcus waved his hand to the priestess and then walked towards the exit of the room.

Emma watched the knight go away in silence. She would have warned him of the incoming danger if he was just another unkindled but after seeing his firm footsteps and resolve she was certain he would eventually overcome such challenge.

" _The Lord who has lost everything…his home, his people, his power…And yet he continues to live and forge his way with that little strength he still has. Surely the traits of a true Lord. May the flames guide your way, Marcus of Astora."_ the priestess thought.

Marcus stumbled back to the nearest bonfire, he was in no condition to continue his journey and he also had to ask the Fire Keeper to infuse the souls he obtained into his own. After dozens of hollows, a very fat but strong knight and a couple of elite knights he was both mentally and physically exhausted. There was no point in insisting if he was going to die anyway and lose the accumulated souls.

" _I didn´t die a single time here…way better than my first time at the Undead Burg. Although that abyss creature and the kitchen almost got me. And the freaking dragon. WHY?! And with a claymore too. Is this a joke? If I find a Goat Demon I swear to Gwyn I will…"_ he stopped his line of thought, "… _Speaking of which. Are there any demons in this age? I killed the Bed of Chaos, they should die as time goes on…and this means that I also…"_ the knight hung his head down.

"Sif, sometimes I don´t know if I want to know the answers. But…I-I have to. Living with doubt of what could have been is way worse. At least you know your master rests in peace with his legacy and honor intact." the knight looked behind his shoulder. "Andre is still alive, I know he´s undead but maybe, just maybe…I can find the others as well. You know them…Anastacia, Rickert, Alvina, Ingward…those guys. And Vamos! Who thought skeletons could have beards…hahahaha…But I can´t waste time looking for them, my only option is to pray that they´re also searching for the lords and we meet on the road." he sighed.

"I wonder if you´re eager to find the Abyss Watchers...I´m sure they can give me an honest answer as to if the Dark is suppressed with the linking of the fire." Marcus sat in front of a bonfire atop of a stone tower. "Much better!" he said extending his hand over the coiled sword.

A yellowish mist spread from the bonfire, engulfing the warrior as he was teleported back to the shrine.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

The Fire Keeper sat on the steps of the ash-covered building. She tapped her thumbs against each other as she waited for the return of the warrior named Marcus of Astora. Her improved hearing prompted her to look around every time someone stepped on the ash but to her dismay it was never the knight from Astora. Her mind focused on the presence of any Fire but the only being present in the shrine was the tiny Ludleth.

Finally after what felt like eternity a mist covered the temple´s bonfire and a figure emerged from it. The keeper of fire heard footsteps as someone approached her in a steady pace, a smile spread across her lips as the person stopped right in front of her.

"Welcome back Marcus, I hope thou art fine. How can I assist thee?" she asked standing up.

Marcus couldn´t help but enjoy the fact that she was more…talkative than the previous fire keepers he met. He was also not used to this kind of treatment but definitively appreciated the difference.

"I´m okay, met a few challenges here and there but nothing I can´t handle." the knight looked at the roof of the shrine to avert his eyes from the face of the maiden. "I need a favor from you." he asked looking back.

"What is it? I´m here to serve thee." the maiden asked.

"I need you to infuse the souls I got into my body. I want to have more dexterity." the champion of fire extended his right hand.

"Very well." the blind woman touched the palm of the warrior´s hand, creating a white flux of souls.

As the process went by Marcus wondered why that girl was chosen to be a fire keeper. Did she become one of her own volition or was she forced to become one? Maybe it was out of necessity, the world seemed way worse than when he escaped the asylum. Unfortunately she wouldn´t answer his questions and this only helped to increase his curiosity. But he knew better than to keep asking questions, some facts were better left hidden after all. At least, that was what he learned from his old master.

"Done." the fire keeper said drawing her hand back.

"Thank you, uh… Fire Keeper." Marcus hesitated.

"Yes?" the maiden said.

"Uh…no. Nothing. I will take a look around the shrine. It won´t take long." the knight waved his hand as he walked away.

Marcus found out that there were two side paths on the sides of the main room of the shrine. One led to the left and one to the right. He chose to go to the right one since it was the closest, the knight had to make a small jump down to a lower level and then proceed through the slightly flooded path. After just a few steps he noticed Andre hammering a weapon inside his chamber. Apparently Marcus´s current position was a bit lower than the Andre´s room and there were a set of stairs leading to the old blacksmith.

The knight decided to keep going under the small bridge that linked Andre and the rest of the room and soon enough met another familiar face. Sat on a rock at the side of the wall Greirat relaxed with his legs folded. He drew something on the ash with his fingers only to rub it aside a moment later. The thief sighed in frustration as he looked upward.

The warrior of Astora felt slightly concerned, frustration was the first step towards hollowing. He knew it because the thief on Sen´s Fortress exhibited similar traits when they last met and the man was clearly slowly losing ground to the curse. Marcus approached the hooded man and stood right in front of him.

"Is everything okay?" the knight asked.

"Huh? Oh! You´re back. And in one piece. Well, I-I kept my promise. No murder or theft from them, I swear." Greirat stuttered.

"It´s fine. I was just worried." Marcus said calmly. " _Did I just take his purpose in life and now he´s going to hollow?!"_ the knight thought as he felt a cold hand over his shoulder. The warrior stretched his arms upwards to hide his anxiety.

"Worried? I-I don´t get it. I thought you disliked me." Greirat said.

"There are worse thieves than you, in both senses." Marcus replied lowering his arms.

"Both senses?" the thief asked.

"Like…terrible at stealing or a murderous psychopath." the knight told.

"Oh…I see." the thief said but he was quite unsure of what to think of it.

"That was a compliment." Marcus told tired. "Do you have anything to sell?" he gestured to the bags around the hooded man.

Greirat frowned, "D-Do you want to buy from me? But I thought…" he started.

"I know you got something on your way back." the knight said carelessly. After waiting for the response that never came the man sighed. "I´m just trying to give you a hand." he said rubbing the back of his head.

Greirat the thief was still a little skeptic about the chance in behavior but grabbed one of the bags nonetheless. "I-I suppose I own you something for freeing me. Something to help you in your journey, maybe?" he grabbed something inside the brown sack and offered to the warrior, it was an ember.

Marcus raised his brow at the gift but accepted it. "You didn´t need to but I´m grateful." the lord stored the ember inside his soul for later use. "Do you have any arrows for selling?" he asked.

"Arrows? I-I got a few of them." the hooded man opened another bag, it was full of regular arrows. "10 souls each, n-not too expensive heh?" he said giving a small chuckle

"Do you have fifty?" Marcus asked.

"Fifty?! Oh…that´s al-almost my entire stock. Bu-But why would I complain?" the thief gave a small chuckle.

After the purchase the "Chosen Undead" return to Andre to give him the Estus Shard he found in the High Wall of Lothric and his normal flask so the smith could upgrade it. Since he had to wait for a few minutes Marcus decided to the check the upper levels of the shrine and started with the left set of stairs at the beginning of Andre´s hall. It was a short ascension which led to another narrower floor that went across the temple´s wall. Soon enough the wall was substituted by a line of pillars that led to the exterior of the temple. The undead covered his eyes with his hand as he stepped outside, the faded light still strong enough to affect his eyes.

As his eyes got used to the change of light the Chosen Undead noticed a tall figure standing just a few meters away from him. It was brownish and tall, easily reaching 5 meters in height. The knight stepped to the right to take a better look at it. It seemed vaguely humanoid in form, made of wood and in a kneeling position. The lower parts of the arms were broken and it seemed that a tree or branches were growing along the torso and arms. The head itself was oval shaped with a black gap in place of the face.

"What is this? A monster? A giant? It is clearly not a normal tree. The corpse of a stone beast?" Marcus pondered as he inspected the abnormal tree.

When the warrior´s eyes reached the ground he noticed the roots spread across the ground in a small area before going deep into the earth. In front of the tree existed a message from another undead, it was written on the ground with the orange glow and black letters he was used to see way back in his first journey.

" _Giant ahead. Use the arm-seed to create balance against dark spirits._ " Marcus read the message. "Balance? I hate when they leave vague messages." he looked back at the "giant", both hands were missing so he guessed the seed was already taken.

Marcus looked at his right, the ground stretched out for a few meters before ending on a cliff. He looked past the tree and saw a broken set of stairs that ascended towards a lonely tower. On the higher level of the half broken stone building there was a stone passageway going to the left which was supported by pillars that went over the roof of the shrine.

"Must be the tower the handmaid told me. I need to know her name, or at least give her one in the future." the knight muttered to himself.

The knight´s eyes wandered to the left of the tower, the ground by the side of the tower was surprisingly close to the roof of the main structure of the shrine, he could probably climb it with some effort if he so desired. In a spot very close to the roof a dead white tree stretched onwards towards the knight in a diagonal position. The roots were the only thing sustaining the dead flora.

"A tree which defies gravity, the inevitable, even after long dead. Or maybe…a tree that did its best to get out of the dark and reach sunlight until it succeeded? Maybe both…Heh, I should call this an Undead Tree." Marcus smiled as he returned to the dark interior of the Firelink Shrine.

 **Notes:**

 **Finally another chapter! Took me a while to finish because I was thinking about what to include and what not. I didn´t include most of Marcus´s journey through the High Wall because you can guess his performance against common enemies and traps.**

 **Lothric´s knights are some of the hardest "knights" of the games I have ever faced. They gave me and even other veterans some trouble at the beginning. Marcus´s strategy of piercing the knight´s helm and bashing with blunt weapons is actually effective in real life.**

 **In game Greirat never states how you will identify Loretta which is weird since our character knows that the bone belongs to her. So I had to add something to make this less…inconsistent.**

 **Marcus´s remarks about the dragon and the sword are based on the fact that in Dark Souls 1 the Claymore is found on a bridged guarded by a giant red drake.**


	4. Warnings

A pair of glowing blue eyes watched a figure walk down a set of stairs. The owner of these eyes huffed a small puff of cold breath as the knight slashed a hollow and then another. Despite the cold emanating from it the being felt a warm feeling rush across its veins. A thing very common in many creatures of Lordran that extended even to many of its people: Thirst. But not the usual desire for water, no…it was something else. A more primitive sensation, a more…aggressive need. Bloodlust. A deep desire for blood, for meat, for action…but its instincts kept it on place for it had to wait. The walls had several narrow passageways and places to hide, too many ways to escape its grasp. The prey had to corner itself first in a place the beast could reach and move with freedom. Then…lunch would be served.

Marcus entered a large rectangular room with high ceiling. The ground was cracked in various places, showing the barren earth beneath the stone floor. Torches burned on the walls, the flame dancing as a fresh air current blew through the room. At the other side a great red gate was closed, the middle warped as if a giant had struck it with a mighty battering ram.

Marcus glanced at the ground and then at the gate. " _I´m not alone here…"_ he thought as he walked forward.

The knight reached the broken gate without any trouble, he noticed the gaps in the middle were covered by dark roots. They weren´t unusually large nor contained any traces of fire but their very presence awoke a memory inside the warriors´ mind. As if to confirm his fears a distant short roar echoed from behind him, prompting Marcus to look back at its source.

At the entrance of the room, in front of a small gate, a black portal had appeared. It was a mass of darkness with a misty white core that emanated drops of snow from time to time. The knight from Astora stored his mace and shield, summoned the greatsword he inherited from the great wolf and wielded it with both hands.

" _Not again."_ the warrior thought as he entered a battle stance with the sword held in front of him.

Like a carriage guided by a fierce war boar a creature emerged from the dark portal charging at full speed. The beast ran on its four limbs, the thick fluted armor covering almost every spot except for the cold light blue eyes and the joints. It was wider than two carriages put side by side and at least twice as tall as the Lord of Cinder. It resembled a boar or bear in form, having a protuberant back and quite small limbs for its size. The creature itself emitted a cold aura that froze the air around it and what seemed to be black hair sprouted from some of the fissures of the helm and body. Finally the frost monster carried a large metal mace on its left hand that also emitted a cold aura.

Marcus waited as the beast came closer, he took notes on the creature´s size and speed and thought on how early he would need to dodge. The situation reminded him of the armored boar he faced in the Undead Burg, a painful memory that taught him some important lessons. The beast was almost upon him when he decided to roll to the side. The monster crashed upon the broken gate with such force that the sound resembled a thunder produced by the lighting of Gwyn himself.

The undead stood up the fastest he could and searched for any gaps on the monster´s armor as he moved behind it. He found one opportunity at the beginning of the monster´s right thigh where there were only clothes covering the skin. The Lord of Cinder jumped forward with the greatsword held with both hands and plunged the blade deep into the weak point. The monster gave a long and deafening scream as blood poured from the injury. It turned around lifting its giant mace to crush the one who caused it pain. Marcus, however, was ready for the attack and he simply walked to the side, the giant thing smashing the ground he was standing just a second ago.

" _He´s faster than I thought…"_ the knight thought as he dodged the fist of the monster. Marcus pinned the hand of the creature on the ground, he noticed it had five fingers just like a human or a god.

The Lord of Cinder was too distracted to notice the icy creature moving the mace back in preparation for a horizontal attack. The blow sent the warrior flying, his body sliding across the ground and creating sparks of light.

" _I have never faced an icy creature before, have I?"_ Marcus thought as he stood up, his bones still intact since his armor had absorbed most of the damage. " _Not even in the painted world. I wonder how she´s doing…she had some scales…"_ Marcus looked straight into the monster´s eyes.

"I don´t think you´re peaceful or kind. Besides, you attacked first." Marcus held the sword horizontally by his side.

Both combatants ran towards each other. The creature went for a wide swipe with the mace but the knight simply ducked underneath the hefty weapon and stabbed the left eye of the monster. The chilling beast flayed around in agony launching Marcus away in the process. The knight rolled several times until he managed to stab the ground with Ciaran´s dagger and stop the movement. He rose his head to look at the monster, the thing was still screaming in pain, striking the ground and air several times with the mace as it allowed the rage to overtake its body. The warrior carefully stood up but decided to wait for a while since it was dangerous to approach it in this frenzied state.

"Sif, do you think that…" Marcus said but rolled to the side when he saw the monster charging at him at full speed.

Just as Marcus got on his feet he had to roll again to avoid another charge. When the beast turned to perform a third charge the undead held the sword with both hands by his side and flexed his legs. They ran after each other, the scene very similar to a joust between knights of old. The warrior flexed his legs and extended his arms forward in a powerful trust aimed at the creature´s good eye. The power of the attack was further increased by the beast´s charge, making the blade pierce all the way through the skull of the icy monster. However, the monster was still at top speed and the knight was pushed back by the form of the creature. They crashed on a brick wall, the massive body of the creature pressing the charred corpse of the knight on the solid wall.

"Shit…." Marcus whispered as the creature gave a step back and collapsed on the ground, releasing him.

The knight fell on his knees and then used his hand to stop his fall. The ribs were severely damaged and any minor movement caused enough pain to make a commoner scream in agony. The knight, however, was no common man and carefully moved his arm to reach the golden flask on his waist. He lifted the visor of the helm with the back of his hand and drank two sips of the golden liquid. Immediately all the wounds were healed and his stamina replenished.

"Should have known that this would happen…" the knight said as he stood up.

He looked at the corpse of the icy creature, it was emanating small fragments of cinder that floated and converged in front of the great gate. In just a few moments a bonfire spawned and like before the creature had disappeared by the time the bonfire had formed. Marcus felt a surge of souls filling his body alongside a distinct and bigger soul that he supposed belonged to the monster he had just killed. Marcus ignited the bonfire and sat in front of it to refill his flask. He looked at the sword on his hand and gave a faint smile.

"One more abyssal creature down. I suppose…" Marcus scratched his helm. "Anyway, good work Sif. It seems I cannot use your magical strength yet though you´re still strong. This means I´m still dumb and since he lied to me…well…" the knight stored the weapon inside his soul. "Hm…my armor seems to be doing fine against the enemies until now. It seems the titanite paid off in the end…I don´t need more dexterity for now nor strength, affinity with spells or miracles can wait. Oh! Of course you idiot! No, not you Sif. I know what I need to focus." he stretched his hand over the bonfire and teleported back to the shrine.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

After allowing the firekeeper to increase his ability to carry more weight the undead quickly used the bonfire to return to his journey. The Fire Keeper was shocked by his eagerness, he had waited only enough for her to finish the prayer before leaving. The knight didn´t even sit on the bonfire to receive its healing effects. Meanwhile Andre had stopped hammering a longsword and was looking at the bonfire at the other side. Greirat rushed to his side, his breath heavy and inconstant.

"I was going to ask him something…" Greirat said between gasps of air.

"The Lad has always been like this. If you want something from him you have to catch him or wait for him to talk to you." Andre told.

"You know him?" the thief asked.

"Aye, forged a good deal of weapons for him." the smith told. "Suppose you have a task for him." he said.

"I asked for a favor. Not to-too much." Greirat answered.

"It´s goin´ to take a while then. I don´t think he will need me as much this time around." Andre turned to grab a new weapon.

The bearded smith went for a longsword with a golden cross-guard and a black silver blade. He carefully enveloped his meaty fingers around the handle and placed the weapon on the anvil.

 **(Lothric´s Great Gate)**

Marcus was breathless as he came upon the sight before him. He had just passed through the great iron gate and now was standing on the edge of a cliff. The sides were blocked by stone walls leaving only the cliff in front of the undead. In the distance it was possible to see the sky and below it a multitude of buildings of various designs in a far lower level. Surrounding the agglomerated of buildings mountains rose in the left and front while the right was covered by the sea.

"This is beautiful…!" Marcus said as he placed the over his chest and summoned a brass binoculars.

"So this is how the sea looks like. That underground sea is beautiful and all but the Sun really changes the mood. I wish I had time to spend on a proper beach…Anyway. How in Gwyn´s name I go down there?" he moved the binoculars around trying to search for any path or maybe even a bonfire. There was none. "Maybe I took the wrong…I almost forgot!" Marcus shouted.

The knight summoned the banner Emma gave him and lifted it front of him. It was awkward, how a banner was supposed to create a new path? He kept pondering over the effects of the gift as he counted the seconds. After a minute the corner of his eyes saw movement coming from the very edge of the cliff. He narrowed his eyes as a blood-red hand touched the surface of the broken road. Soon the owner of the hand emerged, it was a white humanoid creature with bat wings and a brain-shaped head. Overall the creature had a slim and frail build and seemed to lack any proper means of inflicting serious damage. Another two gargoyle-like creatures not unlike the first suddenly appeared from below, they flapped their wings in a steady pace to remain flying as they surrounded the Lord of Cinder.

"These creatures again?! Oh! No! Wait! Just give me a second to prepare myself!" Marcus said placing the shield on his back and storing the sword inside his body

The monsters grabbed his arms and lifted him from the ground, two flameless chaos demons held the knight by the hands while the third went in front of them as if it was the leader. Usually a man would be scared of falling to his death but Marcus had already suffered a similar experience in the past. He knew the demons wouldn´t release him and that they were in fact transporting him to a new location. Still, the way they carried him put a strain on his arms and the position wasn´t comfortable either since his legs dangled to the sides with every turn they made.

"Hey, I have a favor to ask. Could you bring me to Anor Londo? City of the Gods?" he asked as they descended but they didn´t listen. "You know, big city with the silver knights and that colossal woman? Does this ring a bell?" he asked again. "Is this because I killed the Bed of Chaos?" he asked. "Wait a minute! YOU´RE DEMONS! HOW are you AH!" the knight fell on the ground with a thud.

The knight slowly stood up as he recovered himself from the fall. He looked around and noticed he was standing on top of a small broken tower. In the distance on the right existed a large building with some towers on both sides. It wasn´t tall like a castle nor did it had any embellishment. It was probably a place dedicated for some kind of activity or event. On the front Marcus could see a closed gate on the middle of a stone wall. From the ruined tower a set of stone stairs descended in a straight line until it reached a platform that extended to the left where another broken tower stood with many of the bricks missing. In front of the platform there was a narrower set of stairs on the right that descended until it reached a bridge at the same level of the gate.

Marcus heard the crackling of fire and so looked at his side, just two feet away from him a bonfire burned timidly, the flame gently enveloping the coiled sword.

"I´m not the first…" the knight whispered as he sat in front of the bonfire to mark his position. "And another bonfire? This makes my life so much easier." Marcus stood up and stretched his arms. "So there are demons even after what? 100 000 years? Unless I just killed the source and there aren´t any new demons. But there´s still a chance she´s alive!" Marcus said.

After a brief moment of hope the forgotten Lord clasped his hands together and begged the gods for the lady to be fine. He wasn´t familiar with most of the traditional rituals performed by clerics, despite spending a good amount of time with one, but the little he learned he used on his prayers to ask whatever god was hearing him at that moment to give the chaotic child mercy and health. When the prayer was finished he descended the stairs while looking at the closed gate. On the bridge a bunch of grey-skinned and shirtless hollows were praying in front of the gate while a duo wandered aimless behind them. They paid no attention to the brave undead that came from behind them and the duo did nothing but look at him. Marcus asked himself if they were fully hollowed since they weren´t attacking him but his thoughts were interrupted when the gate opened revealing a pack of starved grey furless dogs behind it. A man wearing dark robes and a pointed hat gave a signal to the dogs which eagerly jumped at the defenseless hollows. The knight was caught off guard and didn´t react as the first dog chewed the neck of the nearest hollow while the second dragged another by the leg.

The horrible acute screams of the first two victims awoke Marcus from his trance, the warrior shook his head twice and then focused on the problem at hand. He wouldn´t stand by as the rest of the hollows were killed, even though they had no sense of self or hope of salvation. The knight summoned the claymore from his soul and quickly slashed and behead the starved dogs with ease, each beast taking only a single swing to be put to rest. Still, Marcus couldn´t save everyone, half of the hollows were killed in the skirmish but fortunately the survivors weren´t harmed. With the last dog dead Marcus turned his gaze at their owner, the man was still standing behind the closed gate as if mocking the knight. Unfortunately for the man there was a lever on Marcus´ side just by the gate´s left. The savior lost no time and pulled the lever and soon the metal gate was lifted.

The black robbed man seemed to notice his own predicament and quickly turned back to retreat. He didn´t go far since the undead quickly reached him and stabbed the coward in the chest, the blade fully penetrating the clothes and flesh of the man.

Marcus stared down at the corpse with disgust, he kicked the body aside to see the man´s face. "A Hollow…so this man´s strongest thought was of torturing people. Killing a murderer is one thing, I get that. But what´s the point of torturing a hollow? The person can´t even feel guilty or change for the better. They can´t even be considered the person that did the murder. Hollowing is already a great punishment for any undead." the knight said walking back to the hollows.

The knight stopped in front of the survivors. They just stood there, the mouths slightly open and arms hanging on their sides. They didn´t attack or move but simply stared at him with their black void eyes. The Lord of Cinder nodded once and then walked past the mindless undead in silence, happy that they left him alone. The warrior looked forward, there were some carriages on the sides of the bridge and an archway at the other side that lead to the rest of the bridge. When he passed the archway he was met with an unexpected scene. A multitude of corpses where spread not too far away from his position. When Marcus approached one of the bodies he noticed it was humanoid with large black robes and a white turtle-like shell on the back held by a pair of chains. All the corpses looked exactly the same and each of them seemed to have died from exhaustion.

"What happened to them?" Marcus said to no one as he walked between the corpses.

The Chosen Undead stopped when he reached the end of the bridge. It was completely broken with the rest of it far away and out of reach. The accursed man looked down and saw a part of the bridge that had fallen a couple of meters but was still connected to the other side. The corpse of a large black drake on top of it.

"Oh, so that´s what happened." Marcus whispered as he turned back.

"Please, grant me death! Undo my shackles." a tired male voice spoke from somewhere amongst the corpses.

The knight looked around for the source of the sound. He spotted a wooden staff moving slightly to the sides as the voice repeated the same words from before. The man hastily walked towards the wooden staff until he reached the sole survivor of the group.

"Hey, are you okay?" Marcus asked tapping the man´s shoulder.

"Oh…Oh! Then it is true…" the man spoke as he looked at the newcomer. He used the staff to support himself and stand up.

The stranger had the same tattered black robes as the rest, leaving only his thin legs and feeble arms exposed. The head was covered with a large hood that obscured the hunchback´s face leaving no clue of his facial traits.

"A champion of ash, as I live and breathe! To be in your presence is a great honour." the man bowed the best he could despite the pain and unusually heavy shell.

" _Champion of ash? I thought unkindled were treated like failures or something. Hm…I´m not sure what to think of it."_ the undead thought. "I´m Marcus of Astora." the knight bowed. "Why do you wish to die?" he asked.

"I am Yoel of Londor, a pilgrim as you can see, only…Somehow, I've failed to die as was ordained. I should be dead!" the frail man exclaimed. "Well…perhaps my calling lies elsewhere. Say, Champion of Ash, how does the idea of taking me into your service strike you? I was once a sorcerer. Surely I can be of use." the hunchback said.

" _If he wants to be dead why didn´t he jump off the cliff? There´s a bonfire close by, he just needs to jump a couple of times until he hollows."_ Marcus thought as he rubbed his chin. " _And I didn´t rescue him or anything, he owns me nothing. Unless he´s doing it out of respect but I doubt it, not even she treated me like this…I know what to do"_ the undead lowered his arm. "I`m sorry but I was never too much refined in the soul arts and I tried really hard to understand them." the knight apologized.

The robbed man sighed, "I see…yes, of course. An accursed pilgrim has no place in your honourable service. But if a lost soul should encounter a legend such as you, could that be anything but a movement of fate? I will remain in this spot. Praying solemnly that you might have a change of heart." Yoel said.

Marcus closed his eyes, a fond memory resurfacing in his mind. An open balcony, the sun rays bathing his broken armor. The presence of an easygoing figure by his side that would follow him until almost the very end. " _The way I see it, our fates appear to be intertwined. In a land brimming with Hollows, could that really be mere chance? So, what do you say? Why not help one another on this lonely journey?"_ the words of the sun knight echoed in his mind.

The knight from Astora opened his eyes and recollected the words from the suspicious pilgrim. " _Hm…so he WANTS to be taken."_ Marcus looked back at the broken bridge. " _Why here? They clearly where heading to the other side but it leads to nothing. And if all of them wanted to die why travel here? What´s so special about this place?"_ the undead looked upwards _. "The place where the lands of the lords converge…No, they had a purpose. They want an unkindled. If they want an unkindled why don´t they go to the shrine? Unless…"_ the knight looked back at Yoel. " _I don´t like where this is going…Should I kill him? Eventually he´s going to lure some prideful undead. Also, he told me he wanted to die. If he can´t be my servant then he should ask me to kill him. I would be fulfilling his primary wish, IF this is actually his first goal."_ Marcus thought. "Very well Yoel…I made up my mind. I´m going to make your wish true." he said.

"Hm?! It is an honor to be your servant." the frail man gave a deep bow. When he looked up again he felt an immeasurable pain on the chest. As the hunchback looked down he saw the blade of a greatsword and dark blood leaking from his stomach. "You bastard, foolish and ignorant ash!" he said as he fell down clutching his injury with the free hand. The pilgrim tried his best to stand up but the shell on his back and the wound prevented him from doing so.

"As I suspected…" Marcus said performing a swing in the air to remove the excess of blood on the blade.

"You…! You will pay for that! May you die a hundred times!" Yoel said and then coughed blood.

" _I already did."_ Marcus thought before cutting off the head of the liar with a swift swing.

The Lord of Cinder looked down at the corpse, "If you were honest with me you would say something like: 'But why?' or 'how could you?' or maybe even a 'You´re not the true champion!' or 'Thank you.'." the knight turned his back to the newest corpse and went to the other side. " _I want people to recognize what I did but baseless and false compliments mean nothing to me."_ Marcus thought sad.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Greirat was tying up one of his bags when he heard footsteps. He looked up and saw Marcus standing right in front of him.

"Oh, hello, you're back. And in one piece." the thief said relieved.

"I found Loretta…" Marcus said placing his right hand over the chest. He retrieved an aged yellowish bone with many shards missing. The knight handed the bone to the masked man.

"Heavens, she was already dead..." Greirat extended his hand to grab the bone, his hand trembled as he grasped the aged object.

The small masked man held the gift close to his chest, his head lowered in respect to the deceased woman. After a minute he looked at the knight, his eyes clearly wet and the tears staining his hood.

"Thank you. I-I'm not surprised, though. Hmm, almost a relief, really. You can keep the ring. As, well, a little trinket of thanks, I suppose" Greirat cleaned his eyes and offered another ember from one of his bags.

The knight silently took the reward and stored it in his soul. He also took the opportunity to summon the azure ring from his body. "I already have one. The ring is yours after all." he said offering the ring.

The thief stared at the knight with surprise. Magical rings were rare in Lothric and to refuse one, even if the person already has a copy, was something unthinkable for the thief. He accepted the ring and put it on his finger to avoid losing it.

"I´m sorry Greirat. I brought her body to the cemetery outside the shrine. I put her in the same coffin I woke up. I can take you there, if you wish." the warrior said feeling guilty he couldn´t do anything else.

"You did this?!" Greirat said surprised.

"I don´t have a shovel so it was the second best thing I could have done." the knight explained.

Greirat looked at the old bone in his hands, the ring and the finally at the knight. "Please, show me the way." he said standing up.

"It´s a short trip, five minutes or so. Just stand back and let me kill the hollows on the way." Marcus said.

 **(Later)**

Marcus remained in silence as the smaller man made his prayers in front of the open coffin. He thought about closing it before but judged that he should give a chance for Greirat to give his final words. For a moment he thought there was a chance she turned undead and would revive at the last bonfire she rested at but his hopes crumbled when there were no signs of the mark of the undead on her body.

One thing that Marcus learned during his many attempts to traverse Sen´s Fortress was to NEVER let his guard down at any moment or/and any place. The muffled sound of footsteps came from behind, they got louder as the owner of the sounds approached. The knight clenched the claymore on his shoulder and tightened the grip on his crest shield. He had to act quickly or they would be ambushed in a dead end with just a small space to move. Marcus wondered if it was a giant warrior or a beast, the former would be easier to identify the attacks and react accordingly. In the blink of an eye the knight turned his feet and sprinted forward to gain as much terrain as possible but stopped when he met a figure he once expected to see but wished would never meet.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Andre was humming a song to himself as he hit a halberd with his hammer. The sword he was previously working on was already reinforced and for now only the halberd remained. Between the clashes of metal he heard voices coming from the other side of the hall but paid them little attention since he was busy at the moment.

"You need to sit at the bonfire!" a worried voice warned.

"I told you Greirat, I will be fine! It´s just the armor." another voice said.

"Had a bad time hm? I warned you…" a third voice scolded.

"Actually I think today was a good day." the second voice answered.

Andre finally stopped hammering the weapon, he looked upwards when he heard a weak stomp in front of him. Marcus was standing in front of the blacksmith, his vest and mail were pierced on many spots, the helm was deformed on the back, the left gauntlet was scratched and the leather glove had one of the "fingers" missing, although the finger itself was still intact.

"Found some friends, heh?" Andre said with a smile.

Despite his current state Marcus chuckled, "Not one, not two but three crystal lizards." the knight answered showing three fingers.

"I recall warning you about going too far to get those lizards, titanite isn´t good if you can´t use it." the smith told.

"Oh but THEY were the ones after me." Marcus said placing a hand over his chest. From there he summoned three dark stone shards.

The shards were bigger than the undead´s hand and had some strange glowing green runes over them. The runes were of an ancient forgotten tongue but despite this Marcus recognized them for he saw the same runes on another type of magical stone.

"You can guess what is their purpose, can´t you?" Andre asked.

"I think I do…" Marcus said reluctantly, he had to be careful on how much he said, otherwise people wound ask how an unkindled had defeated several Titanite demons by himself. "Did you learn any new techniques in the past years?" he asked changing subject.

"Yes, plenty of them actually. But without the right tools I´m afraid I can´t do much besides reinforcement and some simple infusions. If I had a special coal I could forge some mighty swords for you." Andre admitted.

"If I find any I will give it to you." the knight said. "Oh! I almost forgot! Is this considered broken?" he gestured to his own armor.

"Hahahaha! Believe it or not the bonfire can fix it. You will save a lot of souls this time around, friend." the smith told.

"But I liked to fix it, gives me an excuse to rest my mind." the warrior´s shoulder fell. "I guess it can´t be helped. See you later Andre." the knight turned and walked back to the bonfire.

"I´ll be seeing you, then. Be careful out there." Andre advised.

Marcus smiled as he sat on the bonfire, those were the same words the bearded man used thousands of years ago. He grasped the silver pendant on his chest and passed his exposed finger over the metallic surface, the damage of the glove gradually disappearing as the power of the bonfire fixed the armor. The dark silver pendant was a treasure he found in the magic city of Oolacile, Artorias being the former owner. It was a special item, blessed with a protective power capable of repelling even the dark magic of Manus himself. The object was a reminder of the brave knight Artorias and his undying will to defeat evil but at the same time it acted as a warning to the dangers of nostalgia. Nostalgia, anger and obsession were the feelings that engulfed Manus, father of the Abyss. An entire city was doomed to the abyss just because a primeval man wanted to retrieve a broken pendant.

Marcus clutched the silver pendant. " _Hm…I remember having another pendant…I was wearing it when I fought the Lords and Seath but I don´t recall having it during my fight with Gwyn. Did I lose it? Oh…I remember now, so that´s what happened."_ the knight shook his head. " _My head is really jumbled after linking the fire. I hope I didn´t forget anything important, hopefully I will get better with time."_ he thought releasing the silver pendant.

As soon as the entire armor was restored the undead Lord stretched his arm over the coiled sword and focused on his next destination: Undead Settlement.

 **Notes:**

 **Took too damn long to finish this chapter, more than I expected.**

 **Thankfully for our hero he managed to avoid Yoel´s scheme. At this point of the story his intelligence isn´t at its peak but he can still come to conclusions based on questions and clues. Simple questions like "Why?" or "Why not?" can help him when deciding the fate of a character.**

 **According to a site where Dark Souls 1 data has been collected a good deal of players die around 100 times in their first playthrough (NG) so that´s why I wrote that Marcus died over 100 times during the course of his journey.**

 **Since this is a story dedicated to players that completed the first and third game I will skip most of the regular encounters unless they bring something new to the story or character. This method allows me to have a faster-paced story until something more "relevant" happens.**

 **If you have any tips or suggestion please leave a comment.**


	5. Everlasting Friendship

Crows flew around the sky, the creatures afraid of the chaos and noise around the area. An explosion of dust erupted from the ground as a giant arrow, more akin to a tree, collided on the earth. Marcus coughed as he stepped out of the dust unharmed, his claymore covered in blood and dust.

" _It must be a giant…"_ the knight thought as he rolled forward to avoid another arrow.

He was currently on the side of a cliff that led to a group of houses at the other side. The left was filled with colossal arrows of the size of trees, some of these arrows had reached their intended targets and bodies of undead could be seen sticking out of the wooden projectiles. The knight frowned as his mind searched for any relevant memory concerning giant arrows. There were memories and lessons learned but none of them would be helpful in this situation. The Second Lord hid behind a white branch tree in a desperate attempt to find cover from the deadly arrows. A second passed and another but nothing came. Silence returned to the cliff as if nothing had happened. However, the crows had dispersed, there was no voice speaking or even a bug crawling around. It was a mortal silence, the knight dared not to move a single muscle in fear of retaliation, he kept his arms close to his body as he focused on the problem at hand.

" _He doesn´t want to destroy the tree?"_ Marcus wondered opening his eyes although he held his breath. "Wait…this looks like the…" he whispered looking upwards. "Maybe if I…" the knight placed his left hand over his chest and focused on the item he needed.

 **(Flashback)**

Marcus waited patiently as a feminine figure emerged in front of him. She was slightly smaller than him by an inch or two and judging by her face she was in her early twenties. Her light brown hair was tied in a bun behind her head while the front was interlaced like a rope. Her light golden dress was mostly well kept, albeit with a small rip on the bottom, a white mantle covered her shoulders down to the middle of her chest and finally but not least a crown of sorts adorned her head. The crown itself was just a thin piece of iron with a short rope in the bottom to keep it in place, a brown hawk feather adorned each side and both were seemingly immune to the effects of gravity since they remained stretched to the sides.

"I am Dusk of Oolacile. It is an honour to see thee again." the princess gave a deep bow to show respect.

Marcus bowed, "How are you doing, pr-Dusk?" Marcus corrected himself just in time.

"I´m doing fine, thanks to thee…" Dusk said albeit with a hint of concern in her face.

"Is something wrong?" Marcus asked.

"This may strike thine ear as somewhat peculiar, but…Long ago, in my homeland of Oolacile, I was beset by a creature of the Abyss. I would have perished then, were it not for the great knight Artorias. In truth, I saw little of what transpired, for mine senses were already fled!

But even still, there was something about Artorias… A certain balance of the humours…

…That quite perfectly fits your semblance. Heavens, could it be that…!" the princess covered her mouth in disbelief.

"Are you implying I´m Artorias?" the knight chuckled, "No, I´m not Artorias. The first time we met was when I rescued you from the crystal golem." he pointed to the left.

"Oh, dear me. That was Oolacile, many centuries ago. Please excuse my fanciful musings." the young woman avoid looking at the knight in shame. "Excuse me for such whimsical utterances. Only, it was so very odd… You, and Artorias. I owe my life to each of you. And both seem to share some resonance of sorts…Perhaps it is the nature of true greatness."

"I admire Artorias for everything he did, I wish I could be more like him." Marcus gazed at the dark sky as he thought about his next words. "Tell me, what happened to Artorias?" he asked.

The princess touched her chin with the tip of her finger, "Hm…Elizabeth told me he went back to Anor Londo. That giant, Gough I think was his name, says the same thing. How unfortunate…I wish I could thank him." Dusk sighed.

"I´m almost sure he knows how you feel." Marcus said, "Hm…I should be going, my duty is almost fulfilled. I can´t slack off now, can I? Hahaha…" the knight laughed nervous.

Silence fell on the valley as the knight looked at the silver pendant on his chest. The woman thought about asking if everything was alright but as she was about to make the question the knight spoke again.

"Dusk, this is a goodbye." he said serious.

The deceased woman wasn´t the smartest sorceress in the world but even she noticed the weight of his words. "Are you…will I see you again?" she asked.

"I don´t think so. Actually…time is convoluted, maybe there´s a chance although I think it is very slim." the knight admitted.

"If that´s the case then allow me to give you this." Dusk said placing her hand over her chest.

The princess summoned a white tree branch. It was around thirty or forty centimeters long with several smaller branches stretching from the main one.

"A catalyst?" Marcus asked curious.

"This is a traditional catalyst of my homeland. It is made from the branch of an ivory tree which contains magical properties. I was told that giving a branch to someone is a symbol of friendship and peace." the woman offered it to the warrior.

 **(End of Flashback)**

From his soul the knight of Astora summoned a catalyst made of a white branch of a tree. The object had several smaller branches protruding from the main one and the bark itself was as white as silk. The knight lifted the catalyst above his head and then took a step away from the white tree. He looked upwards to a tower far away at the other side where a figure could be seen standing with a bow ready to fire. Marcus gulped, he waited patiently with the catalyst high above his head, showing it as if it was a flag or a signal. When no arrow came the warrior looked at the giant at the tower. It was impossible to identify the giant from that distance but it was clear that he had lowered his weapon. Marcus nodded once knowing the giant would see the movement and then lowered the catalyst.

BOOM! An arrow landed by Marcus´s side. The knight jumped back out of instinct and hung the ivory catalyst on his belt for the moment. As the dust cleared a duo of hollows wearing black clothes and hats emerged wielding old plows. They were ready to strike the undead warrior when another arrow came from far away and landed right in front of him. Marcus parried a machete that came from the dust with his claymore and then cut off the head of another hollow. As the dust cleared another arrow fell, this time far away at the other side. A barrage of screams filled the sky as a group of hollow farmers were sent flying by the sheer force of impact of the projectile.

"He´s not aiming at me…It worked!" the Lord of Cinder shouted victorious as the last hollow was killed by another arrow.

The undead lord turned to the right and waved his left hand to the giant of the tower. Surprisingly enough the creature lowered the bow and returned the gesture.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Marcus hummed a song as he walked the hall leading to the handmaid of the shrine. The song wasn´t particularly exciting or beautiful but seemed to follow a specific pattern of three consecutive beats followed by an extended note and ending with a short note.

"Did something happen, brave undead?" the old handmaid asked quite interested.

"I received help from someone." the knight smiled as he placed a hand over his chest.

The knight summoned a severed hand that had an iron gauntlet on it. The hand itself was grasping a blue powder-like material which upon closer inspection revealed it was actually ash. The knight handed it over to the elder woman.

"Oh…! So thou managed to find one." the handmaid said passing her finger over the blue ash. "Passing fine ash thou'st given. Let this ash bestow nourishment. I only hope these new wares content thee..." she said grabbing a pot by the side of her chair.

The handmaid placed the ash alongside the hand inside the pot and then closed it. She chanted something in low voice and finally opened it again. The ash had disappeared leaving only a number of souls inside. The elder carefully picked the souls with her frail and shriveled hands and absorbed them into her body to keep them safe and away from the hands of any thieves.

"So that how it works…" Marcus mumbled, "What did you managed to get?" he asked.

"Charcoal pine resins, charcoal pine bundles, a key and three embers." the maid answered.

"Another key." the knight covered the front of his helm with his hand. "Gods this is going to take a while." he said tired.

The elderly woman looked at the knight with amusement, "Art thou curious?" she asked.

"A little, I just have a feeling about that key. By the way, how much is this new key?" the Lord of Cinder asked.

"1000 souls. I would recommend you getting it, who knows how long will it take for an unkindled to take interest? Hm?" the handmaid said smirking.

"You dirty merchant… I know what you´re trying to do." Marcus pointed at the elder.

"Don´t misunderstand my words, brave undead." the handmaid scolded although the words lacked anger. "Thou might need this key in the nearby future." she said.

The knight narrowed his eyes, "Do you know what the second key does?" he asked.

"I have a guess...This ash of yours, it belongs to a mortician does it not?" the handmaid said looking at the pot on her hands. "One who takes care of burying people and funeral rituals. Thou found it in the Undead Settlement?" she asked and the man nodded. "Hm…This key might be of little interest for now, thou won´t need it. Feel free to buy it though, it that´s thy wish.".

"How do you know I won´t need it?" the knight got curious.

"The Undead Settlement has little to offer regarding services and what is available is of little value to someone like thee." the handmaid stated.

"Someone like me." the undead raised his brow.

The elder chuckled, "Thou art a shy one, art thou not?" she said looking at him.

Marcus crossed his arms, "No, I´m just really careful." he explained. "I`m buying the key.".

After the purchase the knight turned and made a step towards the bonfire.

"May I ask why?" the handmaid questioned.

"For the others." Marcus answered as he walked away.

The knight from Astora glanced at his side and saw the firekeeper waiting patiently by the stairs. He mumbled something as he tried to recall if there was anything he needed to ask, his mind passing through every task or tip he needed to remember for the nearby future. Finally he went towards her.

"Hello, how are you doing?" Marcus asked concerned.

"I´m doing fine, Marcus of Astora." the firekeeper bowed to show respect. "Is there anything I can do to help thee?" she asked.

The warrior was already going for an object inside him when he remembered that the woman was blind. "I found some human bones in the Undead Settlement, they´re not homeward bones but I have a feeling they´re special. They´re very clean to be honest, no blood or anything." he described.

"These must be bones of a fallen undead, bless their soul. If thou so desire they can be cast upon the bonfire of the shrine to strength the power of Estus across the world. I ask thee, however, to pray for them before doing so." the blind lady told.

"This means every sip from the Estus Flask will heal more." Marcus deduced and the firekeeper nodded. " _I used a few firekeeper souls to reinforce my old flask. But offering undead bones effectively reinforces everyone´s flask. Hm…this COULD be bad, could be GREAT, could be horrible. I better keep it for now."_ he thought. "Thank you er…firekeeper. Damn, I didn´t bring back any lords yet." the knight rubbed his head as he looked at the empty thrones.

The firekeeper´s face sulked and for a moment she fondled her fingers to relieve her anxiety.

"I guess I need to try harder then…hahaha…" the knight laughed. "Alright, time to go. See you…damn it. I promise it won´t take long." he said going to the bonfire.

After the Lord of Cinder disappeared amidst the yellow fog of the bonfire the Firekeeper turned her head towards the flame of the bonfire. How long has it been? How many years had passed since she assumed her role as a firekeeper? She had waited years for a strong unkindled to rise and inherit the flame but the few that answered the call had failed early on and with each defeat, each loss, she lost a bit of hope. After some time she thought she would never be relieved of her duty, of her prison. It all seemed hopeless until…until he came.

At first she couldn´t believe what she was in front of her, such radiance! Such light! It was an unbelievable sight! But then the questions came, why was he here? Who was he? She couldn´t remember or perhaps she didn´t know. Marcus of Astora, the name had no meaning to her. There were no records of any great deed performed by this knight. No monuments she was aware of, no books, no songs, no tales, nothing! How could such man have no recognition at all?! There was no doubt about WHAT he was but no clue of WHO he was.

The blind lady wondered if Marcus was someone like Ludleth, if he was capable of facing the challenges on his way. She heard him talking with Ludleth about bringing them back alive, if this was the case then it wasn´t a matter of strength but of charisma and negotiation skills. Even so he would need to be skilled to surpass the other obstacles between the lords. Of course, she didn´t expect him to bring one so soon but his comment made her uneasy. Marcus´ flame was minuscule, a far cry from the glorious souls of past lords, did he really have the strength to fulfill his duty?

The firekeeper sat on the staircase of the shrine that led to the left roll of thrones. There was another problem about Marcus´s revival. No one rang the bell shortly before he came for the first time and no throne was prepared for him. How did he come back? This had never happened before. Perhaps…

 **(Undead Settlement)**

Marcus tried to stand up and fight but his body failed him. Shards of ceramic were scattered all around him as a looming figure stood over his body with killing intent. The being was a hollow man covered in tattered red robes. He carried a large machete which he wielded with both hands, each holding an edge of the blade. A wooden plank was tied on his back, acting as an improvised defense.

The knight of Astora clutched the earth beneath his hands as he pushed the ground away with all his might. It wasn´t enough, one of the hollow peasants had hit him in the joint of his leg with a pickaxe and another one got lucky and managed to strike his left arm with enough strength to leave it sore. None of the attacks were lethal but impaired him enough for the tall hollow to throw a giant pot at his head.

"If you´re going to use force…" Marcus whispered as the hollow raised the great machete.

The wounded undead clutched a talisman made of brown fabric in his left hand. A white light formed on the knight´s chest almost as if it was a beacon of hope. The light grew stronger and in the blink of an eye the energy was expelled outwards in a semi-transparent white wave that sent the hollow flying back a couple of meters. Taking the opportunity to recover himself Marcus focused on the words of his next miracle, a short but life-saving tale which would give him a second chance.

The words were repeated in his mind as quickly as possible while the hollow stood up from the ground without any injury at all. The blood-stained blade was lifted high above the hollow´s head as he prepared to cleave the knight in half. Two yellow circle formed on the ground around Marcus with magical runes between the lines. Yellow rays came from the symbols and ascended towards the sky like the flames of a cozy bonfire. Marcus´ wounds promptly closed as the healing miracle took effect and the sacred symbol faded into nothingness. He quickly rolled to the side and avoided the mortal attack from the hollow.

"Thanks." the Lord of Cinder said as he stood up partially healed.

Enraged by the missed attack the hollow charged forward with the great machete held high in the air with just one hand. The mindless man screamed furiously as he brought down the tool upon the faithful knight. Marcus grunted annoyed as he easily sidestepped the attack but became wary when the hollow quickly performed several chops. The attacks were clumsy and the warrior had no trouble dodging them. As the annoyance grew inside of him Marcus decided to end the fight with just a single attack. He sidestepped one last attack and then went for a downward attack with his claymore aimed at the hollow´s vulnerable neck. Blood sprayed from the wound like a dark geyser, covering the sword with darkened blood.

"At least it didn´t explode on my head." Marcus mumbled as he walked away. He rubbed the back of his head with his left hand, "I suppose it is a miracle I´m still alive…heh." he smiled.

The knight passed through a small bridged that connected to the other side of the area. He was currently in an open space with a couple of abandoned houses around and a giant tower at the other side of the bridge not too far away from his position. The warrior looked at his Estus Flasks, he still had 2 more sips and enough strength to cast at least two more healing miracles, it wasn´t terribly bad but rare were the occasions he had time to use the miracles in combat.

"I hope I find a bonfire soon…" Marcus whispered as he went through a gap between two houses.

The area opened even more leading to an ascending hill covered in dark green grass. The right side led to a giant cliff where only death could be found and the left was blocked by a tall rocky mountain. Finally at the other side a very tall tower stood firm and proud with most of its blocks still intact. Stone steps led to a giant wooden door that was currently closed.

Marcus stopped walking when his eyes caught movement on the left. It was a minor thing, a difference most would ignore and carry on but it was significantly enough to make the knight stop. Remembering that he was still carrying the talisman Marcus hanged it on his belt and grabbed the Crest Shield on his back. The knight narrowed his eyes as he tried to identify what had moved, apparently there were only stones but a part seemed to be lighter than the rest and it was…moving? Marcus carefully stepped forward with his shield raised and claymore over his right shoulder, could it be a creature of sorts? He had killed a peculiar double-headed lizard in the past and said lizard used its green skin to hide on the trunk of a tree, it could be something similar.

When he was just a few meters away he noticed a lantern placed on the ground near the moving rock. After two more steps he managed to identify the shape of the rock. It wasn´t actually a rock but the tip of a large hammer. The owner sat on a pile of rocks at the edge of a small cliff looking at the other side, he or she had an armor of similar color of the hammer and apparently hadn´t noticed the battle that had just occurred.

To avoid unnecessary trouble Marcus stomped his way towards the person, his armor clanking with each step. He stopped by the person´s side and took a good look at the them. The person wore a complete armor set made of what could be mistaken as rock but was indeed another mineral. What caught the attention of the knight, however, were the hammer and the helm. The helm closely resembled the head of a gargoyle and the tip of the hammer had small sculptures of gargoyles carved around it.

"You sure like gargoyles, don´t you?" Marcus whispered more to himself than to the stranger.

The person turned their head towards the knight, "Hm…Another one of those Unkindled, are you?" the man spoke with a raspy voice which contained disdain. "All you faceless Undead, behaving as if you deserve respect." he said.

Marcus didn´t like the way he spoke but controlled himself to avoid spilling out anything about his status. "Just because I´m undead? People deserve respect if they do something good, it doesn´t matter what they are. I wouldn´t care if you were an actual gargoyle, for example." he said.

Behind the rocky helm the Gargoyle Knight stared at the knight of Astora with a mix of distrust and curiosity, leaning more towards the former. "Hmph. No matter. Heed my words. If you've any sense, you'll go find a coffin to huddle up inside. You here, in this land of Hollows, you're like a frail maiden on the front lines." the knight explained.

"My coffin is currently occupied so this is out of question. Besides, last time I rested on a coffin that wasn´t mine…well, I met Death..." Marcus said indifferent.

"Are you mocking me?" the Gargoyle Knight said irritated.

"No, I´m very serious. Go ask Greirat if you don´t trust me. Do you know where the Lords of Cinder went?" the knight from Astora asked.

"So you´re fool enough to play the champion…Then go on ahead, traipse right past the abandoned church. You'll face death, and it won't be pretty. Enough death to leave you broken, time after time." the black armored knight chuckled.

"A broken sword can destroy mountains and even a corroded shield can save a life. Don´t underestimate any of them or you will be the one to face death." Marcus warned giving his back to the knight. "So that´s the Church? I thought it was a tower. Actually…nevermind. Thanks for the tip. I´m Marcus of Astora." he looked back one last time before stepping forward.

After just three steps the Gargoyle Knight spoke again. "Hopeless! The whole lot of you. Like little moths, flittering towards a flame." he said.

Marcus stomped the ground and stopped. "What did you say?" he turned to look at the black armored knight.

"You are blindly walking towards your death." the man answered.

" _For a second I thought he was…"_ Marcus thought. "Nevermind. I have better things to do." he said turning.

As Marcus turned he spotted an entrance on the mountain´s side. Stone steps led to a slightly lower level where stone bricks formed an archway. Curiosity took over Marcus and in the blink of an eye he was already walking down the steps and passing through the archway. After passing through the entrance he looked at the sides, the walls were made of old bricks with columns on both sides. A couple of feet away he saw an iron grid with a closed cell door in the middle. At the other side groups of candles burned on the walls, the flickering light bathing a figure on the floor. A person was sat on the ground with their back to the wall. They wore white robes with a matching hood and a short mantle over the shoulders. The person was unaware of Marcus´s presence and was currently using their hands to support themselves.

Marcus froze, "Rhea…?" he stuttered. "Hey you! Are you okay?!" he shouted grabbing the iron bars. "Can you hear me?!" he insisted.

The person didn´t react leaving the knight with a sense of dread. "Is she deaf?" the Lord of Cinder asked himself while releasing the bars.

At first Marcus though about throwing a small, tiny pebble to get her attention but then thought it would be rude and uncaring of his part. He remembered the key he bought from the red maiden of the shrine and tried to unlock the door but it wasn´t the correct one.

"Damn it! Where could I find the key…?" the undead Lord muttered as he turned back to the entrance.

Even though the sound was muffled and almost impossible to hear Marcus recognized the sound of footsteps. He carefully climbed the steps with the shield in front of him but no assailant attacked him nor any monster could be spotted. The knight looked at his right where the Gargoyle Knight was still sitting on a couple of rocks. The knight from Astora raised his brow as he walked towards the man.

"You like poking around in cells, do you? How very genteel!" the man in black armor chuckled.

Marcus didn´t move nor laugh. "Give me the key." he ordered.

"Ah-hah, taken an interest in her, have you? Well she's a lost cause. Couldn't even become a Fire Keeper. After I brought her all this way, and got her all ready. She's beyond repair, I tell you." the other man said.

A memory surfaced in the mind of the forgotten lord. The image of maiden locked inside a cell underneath the first Firelink Shrine. A poor figure in ash-covered robes, unable to speak or even stand up. The memory then changed to the figure of a golden armored knight and two white phantoms at his side inside a magnificent golden hall.

" _Like a moth flittering towards a flame." the golden knight said as the trio walked towards him._

Marcus clutched his left hand and tightened the grip on his claymore. "Give, me, the key." he repeated.

"Otherwise?" the Gargoyle Knight dared clutching his giant hammer.

Both men stared at each other in hostile silence as they prepared themselves for any sudden move. The hill was completely silent, devoid of even the sound of wind or birds. The Lord of Cinder watched the hands of the stranger and noticed his left hand was ready to grasp a great round shield made of stone. On the other hand the Gargoyle Knight had his eyes fixed on the helm of the knight of Astora but paid attention to the arms using the corner of his eyes. The world seemed to stop to watch the conflict like a spectator watching two gladiators before the beginning of a duel.

"I will use this." Marcus finally spoke putting the shield behind his back.

"Hm?" the other knight muttered confused but waited for further reaction.

The warrior from Astora lifted his left hand as if showing the other man something. At first there was nothing but then a flame ignited on the palm, the fire slowly dancing to the sides.

"Heh, so you´re one of those pyromancers. Am I supposed to be afraid of this ember?" the Gargoyle Knight laughed.

"No." Marcus answered turning his back.

The Gargoyle Knight watched the undead knight walk back to the room inside the mountain. Meanwhile Marcus stopped right in front of the cell, he quietly crouched and released the sword on the ground without making any noise. He heard footsteps again from behind and deduced they belonged to the strange man with the gargoyle helm. The knight from Astora focused on the items he needed and soon found them inside a specific part of his soul. His hands trembled but stopped a moment later. Marcus summoned a long bow from his soul alongside an arrow and then fired between the bars of the cell.

"Right in the hea-ARH!" Marcus screamed as an immensurable pain spread across his chest.

The knight of Astora was thrown aside by the swing of a massive hammer. His body hit the wall of the room, producing a loud noise when metal collided with stone. The Gargoyle Knight rushed to the cell and quickly unlocked the door with a key.

"Irina!" the black armored man shouted.

The Gargoyle Knight gasped when he entered the cell. There were human bones scattered across the ground. They were covered in mold and looked old and brittle. The skull of the skeleton was destroyed, the fragments spread on the ground alongside an arrow. The knight rushed to the still oblivious maiden, he crouched and touched her shoulder with his left hand.

"Irina, are you hurt?" the man asked concerned and fearful.

The woman shuddered and then looked upwards. She had white skin and was probably on her mid-twenties judging by her face. Her eyes, however, were not focused on the eyes in front of her but on a part of his "jaw". The iris of her eyes was a faded gold while the pupils were a milky white, indicating blindness.

"Oh, Eygon. Is something wrong?" the woman asked confused.

"I was just checking on you." Eygon lied while looking back at the broken skeleton.

"Please, forgive me, for being such a burden to you." Irina "looked" at the ground in shame.

The Gargoyle Knight stared at the corpse of the knight he just murdered and then back to the maiden. "We´re leaving, this place isn´t safe anymore." he said offering a hand to the blind woman.

 **(Later)**

Marcus reached the hill where he found the locked maiden and the peculiar knight. Surprisingly he found both of them resting on the side of the mountain, the knight was resting his back on the rocky wall while the maiden was on the ground by his side, still supporting her weight with both hands. The Lord of Cinder stopped in front of them but said nothing. Eigon had his arms crossed around his chest with his weapon and shield by his side for quick use. He expected some kind of comment or argument from his victim but apparently the man was expecting the same from him.

"So you do care, after all." Marcus grinned.

Eygon remained silent as he looked at the knight. Marcus averted his eyes and focused on the maiden on the ground which still remained oblivious to his presence.

"Are you okay?" the knight from Astora asked crouching. He glanced at the Gargoyle Knight as if asking permission and received a small nod as answer.

"Ah? Is someone there, anyone? The dark surrounds me, nibbles at my flesh. Little creatures, they never stop biting. So please, hold out your hand, and touch me..." the maiden begged looking forward.

" _Blind…"_ Marcus thought, his memories making the situation even worse for him. He glanced again at the knight.

Eygon simply observed Marcus´s actions but made no further reaction or movement. The warrior from Astora looked back at the maiden and put down his sword on the ground to gently touch her right shoulder.

"Ahh, yes, there you are, so close indeed and so…warm. Then I am not entirely alone, just yet. Praise the merciful gods above..." Irina clasped her hands together and lowered her head.

Meanwhile Marcus pondered over what the maiden had just said _, "Little creatures? Biting? Hm…she told me something about her soul being gnawed by humanity. But she told me it barely caused any trouble on her daily life. Is that why she´s a failed firekeeper?"_ he thought.

"Oh, forgive me. I am Irina of Carim. I came to this land so that I might be a Fire Keeper. Your touch has freed me from the darkness. You are a Champion, then?" the maiden asked after finishing her prayer.

The knight of Astora was taken back by surprise. "I´m Marcus of Astora, I´m searching for the Lords of Cinder." he said. " _Good thing I thought about this beforehand."_ he thought.

"I am weak, and unfit to tend the flames." Irina looked down, "But if it would not trouble you, might I enter into your service, instead?" she looked back at the knight.

Marcus looked at the Gargoyle Knight, "What about this knight by your side?" he asked.

"Eygon? He is my guardian, he brought me here to assume the role of a firekeeper. Even though I´m a failure he still looks after me." the maiden answered with a sad smile.

"Come on, don´t be so negative! You must have been successful on something in your life. A victory is a victory, it doesn´t matter if it´s small or great." the Lord of Cinder said.

Irina was speechless, why would such person give her such support? She was a failure, not fitting to watch over the flames. His optimist was contagious and prompted her to do her best to remember her greatest feats.

"I…I was once a nun in my home of Carim." the maiden replied.

"A nun? Do you know any miracles?" Marcus asked.

"Yes, although only a few…I wish I could learn more but…" Irina said.

The knight pondered for a moment, "I think I can help you with this." he finally said.

"You can? Are you a cleric as well?" the nun asked surprised.

"Not exactly. I mean, I know barely anything about sacred rituals and other practices but I was taught some miracles by a priestess and I did find some scrolls during my journey. I could give…oh. I could read them for you, sometime." the knight offered. "What do you think?" he looked at the Gargoyle Knight.

"What kind of miracle?" Eygon asked suspicious.

"Sacred miracles which tell the tales of the gods. You can take a look at them before I read each one." Marcus detailed. "I wouldn´t give her an evil scroll." he added.

"Hm…very well. Do as you want." Eygon told.

"You are so kind, I do not deserve such treatment. I wish I could repay the favor." Irina closed her eyes in gratitude.

"It appears I have been gone for ages, I´m a little outdated regarding miracles. Maybe you could teach me those I´m not familiar with, it would make us even." Marcus suggested.

"Oh, thank you, sweet Champion. Then I shall take my vows. I, Irina of Carim, solemnly swear to serve you." the maiden bowed her head to the knight.

"You don´t need to be so formal." Marcus smiled. The knight turned to Eygon, "Go to Firelink Shrine, I will visit you both as soon as I can. Now I need to explore a little more and recover my souls." he said standing up.

"We need to talk." Eygon stated in a tone that indicate the knight had no choice but to obey.

"I agree." Marcus answered with an equally serious tone.

After getting some distance Eygon walked past the knight and faced him so he could still watch over Irina during his conversation.

"I will make myself very clear: I am allied to you as long as you assure the girl's safety. And only for that long..." the Gargoyle Knight pointed his finger at Marcus´s chest.

The knight of Astora moved the finger aside with his hand. "If you DARE hurt her, a gargoyle will look like a beautiful woman compared to you." he pointed at the man´s face. "And DON´T leave her alone again. If you´re actually her guardian then watch over her!" he exclaimed.

Eygon gave a short laugh which turned into a chuckle, "Very well. I have a question, however. What were you planning to do with your fancy pyromancy?" he eyed the other knight with suspicion.

"I was going to destroy the bars but then I saw the skeleton walking by her side. I knew you would kill me a second later but…it was worth it. " Marcus rubbed his side. "Now if you excuse me, I have some souls to retrieve." Marcus walked back to the cell.

 **Notes:**

 **Finally! I had a very rough time deciding how the events would unfold.**

 **The giant of the Undead Settlement spares those with branches given by him or if you select one as burial gift. The game states that these branches were once used as tokens of friendship and since Marcus received one directly from Dusk, his branch counts as a gift.**

 **Marcus´s comment about meeting Death is a reference to a coffin in the Catacombs that can be used to meet Nito early in the game.**

 **Irina´s role has been partially reversed in this story. Now instead of a "teacher" she will be the student, for the most part. Marcus has a ton of scrolls with him and wouldn´t make sense to make him the student so I came up with this idea.**

 **If you´re wondering, Marcus didn´t find Cornyx. I had to look at a guide to find him in my first playthrough and I must say that it is very easy to miss the path since you´re being assaulted by enemies on the way.**

 **I think it is obvious who Marcus going to meet in the next chapter. I wonder how things will play out…**


	6. Demon slayer

"Velka, you REALLY need to stop this. I mean it!" Marcus stated.

The undead warrior was in a long and narrow stone hall deep beneath the surface. Marcus stood in front of the statue of a tall woman in a kneeling position, the stone robes covering the entire body except for the hands and the lower half of the face. The left hand of the statue held a stone book while the other was stretched downwards as if showing something. Grave tablets could be seen around and behind it, the fronts of the tablets were all facing the statue as if the owners worshipped it even in death.

Marcus looked at an ash-colored square stone on his right hand. It depicted a human skull and had several cracks around it, although not to the point of compromising the item.

"Do these sacrifices mean nothing to you? Do you see them just as tools to further your goals? I used these stones twice, I admit! But I had no other choice." the Lord of Cinder looked at the statue. "You could at least write their name behind the stone." he added.

The man sighed, he really disliked purging stones. Were they useful? Definitively! Were they horrendous? Absolutely. Each stone was once a human or another being, he learned this from Oswald. He also learned by experience that some of them were not forged but formed inside the shell of some creatures, an aspect that made the stone slightly more bearable to use. Nonetheless the stone itself was a sacrifice, whenever or not the victim suffered any pain after being transformed was a mystery no one could answer.

A faint sound came from the direction of the statue like a whispering wind eager to tell a tale. The undead looked at the source of the sound and found an undead message written at the base of the statue, a glowing orange light surrounded the letters.

" _Statue and stones reduce hollowing, not a cure."_ the knight read the message.

"Hollowing? I thought they only removed curses related to petrification." Marcus rubbed the back of his head. "Considering how many times I have already died, I don´t think I will need to use this. Could use to save somebody, though…damn it, I hate these stones." he said sitting on the ground. " _It would be far easier to decide if I knew wherever or not the victim suffers after using it. The worst part is that if I leave it here someone is going to use it and even if this doesn´t happen the stone will eventually be destroyed by accident."_ he thought.

" _A life for another. To kill another and use their souls to get stronger is a thing, evil as it may be. But to transfer your curse to another being is wrong, especially if it is the Undead Curse. Besides, it isn´t even a cure!"_ the undead lord removed his helm. "Thinking about it, the strength of the undead is their will to fight, to live, to win. Someone with a weak mind will hollow even without dying but others can die dozens of times. However…if this stone reduces hollowing and someone had the trouble of creating copies of it then it has some kind of effect. The purging stone acts as a surrogate body, it totally removes petrifying curses but only reduces hollowing. Then this means the stone doesn´t remove the source, only the accumulation of hollowing. I wonder what exactly causes hollowing." Marcus said to himself.

The Lord of Cinder looked at the statue of Velka. "Do you really care about us? I know you have influence over the Painted World. But I also saw the same statues in New Londo and we both know what happened there. Your crow saved me from the Undead Asylum but did you do that to punish the gods or to save the world?" the knight stood up.

"A sacrifice must be a choice, not a tool." Marcus looked at the stone on his hand. "Izalith was engulfed by desire, Nito was evil and Gwyn was defending the Flame. Seath was also evil and he was almost as bad as the Four Kings and their knights. I killed them because they deserved AND to link the Fire." he stated while crouching. "The handmaid was right. This is of little value for someone like me." the warrior gently put down the stone on the ground and then stood up. "Think about what I just said, I know you are capable of doing good, Priscilla told me about you." he said turning his back to the statue.

"And I´m not a fool!" the knight added a second later.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Marcus looked around in search of Irina and Eygon. He found them sitting on the stairs underneath the left row of thrones.

"Hello Irina, Eygon. How are you?" Marcus asked bowing.

"Still in one piece, hm?" Eygon asked.

"Oh, Marcus of Astora, welcome back to the Shrine." Irina said quite surprised.

"Thanks…hm…Irina, what miracles do you know?" the knight of Astora asked.

The maiden closed her eyes for a moment and then opened again as she remembered the name of the tales she had memorized. "I know the tales of Heal, Replenishment, Homeward and Caressing Tears." she told.

"Caressing Tears? I don´t know this one." Marcus mumbled. "Could you tell me the tale?" he asked.

"Of course Champion of Ash, I am at your service." Irina gave a small bow.

" _I´m not Ash, I´m Cinder."_ Marcus thought. "Okay then. Begin when you´re ready." he gestured for the woman to take her time only to remember she was blind.

Irina cleared her throat and then began telling the tale of Caressing Tears in sonorous voice. As the story progressed other people began to pay attention to the blind woman, Hawkwood simply looked at Irina while Greirat watched from afar, both interested in the tale of loss and grief. Marcus felt a burden in his chest, a weight heavier than any armor which dared to make him collapse, but he refrained from interrupting the maiden. When the tale was over a specific part called his attention.

" _Blue and Red tears."_ Marcus thought as he searched his soul for something.

Eygon lifted his brow when the undead retrieved two rings from his soul. One of them was the Blue Tearstone Ring while the other was a red version of the former, the Red Tearstone Ring.

"Interesting…" Eygon murmured but refrained from saying anything else when Marcus gestured him to be quiet.

" _Do you want her to feel guilty?! Don´t tell her I have these rings!"_ Marcus thought storing both rings inside his soul. "I liked this tale, Irina. Your voice is also quite good." he complimented.

"My voice isn´t that special, my seniors were far better than me…" Irina said.

"One more reason to train. I had many teachers in my life, this didn´t discourage me from trying my best." Marcus said. "Now it is my turn, what tale should I read first…? Oh, I know…" he placed the hand over his chest.

Marcus retrieved a divine scroll, one that he would never forget. Many lines were written on the paper and the words themselves were made with such care and such devotion that one would think they belonged to a loving mother or a passionate lover.

"This one is quite long, I think you will like it." Marcus handed the scrolls to the knight of Carim.

The knight of Carim took the scroll and read the tale in silence. After reading every word, every passage, every line, he quietly lowered his arms and turned his attention to the owner of the scroll. Even though the gargoyle helm hid most of his face his eyes betrayed him and nothing short of surprise could be seen on them.

"Where did you get this?" Eygon asked serious.

"A priestess gave it to me…" Marcus answered looking down at the ground. "Can I share the tale with Irina?" he asked a bit more optimistic.

Eygon narrowed his eyes, "Very well…so this the kind of scroll you carry." he said.

"You still don´t trust me, do you? Good job, I wouldn´t trust me if I were in your position." Marcus grabbed the scroll from the knight of Carim. "Okay then. Oh! I almost forgot. I will just repeat the tale, okay? I´m not very good with this whole…singing method." he explained.

"I understand, thank you for helping me." Irina nodded.

"I hope you enjoy it. This miracle is called…Soothing Sunlight." Marcus smiled.

 **(Later)**

"So…did you like it?" Marcus asked folding the scroll.

"It was a wonderful tale! I will never forget it!" Irina said with a sincere smile.

"It is one of my favorites, I´m glad you liked it." the knight stood up. "I´m sorry but I have to go. I will come back soon and tell you another take, I promise." Marcus looked at Eygon. " _I´m counting on you Eygon. Don´t disappoint me._ " he thought.

The knight of Astora was about to use the bonfire when he remembered another thing he needed to do. He searched for Greirat and found the thief on his usual spot. The smaller man was currently searching his wares while mumbling some numbers and names.

"Am I interrupting something?" Marcus asked.

"Hm? Oh! No, no you aren´t." Greirat said quickly turning to face the knight. "Ho-how can I help you?" he asked.

"I have been thinking…what are you going to do now? I mean, do you have any goal?" the knight asked.

"A goal? Well…I have been thinking. You know I´m a petty thief, barely useful on most cases but…Well, c-could I…how do I say? Prowl? I could find something useful for you. Weapons, trinkets, I-I bet some firebombs would be useful." the midget asked.

"I don´t use items except in extreme occasions. I could use some help, though. I´m fairly sure I missed something in the Undead Settlement. Since you´re willing to search for items could you search the place for anything useful? This includes keys, items, armor and weapons." Marcus suggested.

"The Undead Settlement is my home, I know it like the palm of my hand. You won´t be disappointed." Greirat said confident.

Marcus rubbed the back of his head, " _Should I give him the ring? I mean, he kept his word up to this moment. Hm…maybe I should wait a little longer."_ he thought.

"Is something wrong?" Greirat asked.

"I´m just pondering. I should go, see you soon. Try to not kill any sane person while I´m away." Marcus said walking away.

"I-I will do my best." the thief stuttered.

 **(Undead Settlement)**

Marcus opened the door of the great church that Eygon had mentioned the first time they met. This time the undead knight had a better time against the hollows of the small town and so managed to keep most of his estus. The wooden doors creaked as the knight pushed them to the sides, revealing the lit interior of the church. The knight entered a short hall which was filled with burning candles on both sides and ended with a set of ascending stairs covered with burning candles. The undead climbed the stairs carefully to avoid stepping on any small candle while at the same time paying attention to any suspicious noise. Once on top of the stairs Marcus looked around, he was inside a square room with nothing but a wooden square platform in the middle with ropes on both sides. The design reminded the Undead Lord of the elevators found in the church of the Undead Parish, elevators that lacked any safe measure.

"At least these have good rails on the sides…" the knight mumbled stepping forward to use the elevator.

When Marcus was about to step on the platform the structure creaked and then started to move upwards towards the top of the tower. The undead warrior gave a step back and moved the Crest Shield in front of him while tightening his grip of the claymore. He waited for several seconds as the ropes continued to move. When another platform emerged from below with a figure on top of it the knight´s heart stopped, his mind unable to process any action or movement. The sight in front of him was mundane, normal and certainly not extraordinary, at least to most people. What caught his attention, however, was the shape and sound produced by the person on the platform.

A man stepped forward from the platform, his white armor was shaped like a sequence of hills that went down and up around his body acting like barriers of steel against weapons of multiple types, his round helm was strong and ideal for blocking curved blades like scythes and shotels and his leggings, pauldrons and gauntlets were sturdy and large, providing a great deal of defense against attacks from man or beast. The knight mumbled something under his breath as he took two steps and stopped by Marcus´s side, his thoughts deep as the most profound ocean and his focus greater than a scholar during a study.

Marcus couldn´t help but remain still, the words dared to escape his mouth but the shock was still too much to let him do anything but watch. The man in front of him was a knight of Catarina, a knight of Catarina wielding a zweihander and a small round shield with a spike on the middle. The man looked EXACTLY like a knight he once knew, a knight he thought lost to the Dark Curse. A comrade, a friend…a friend he doomed…

"Sie-Siegmeyer?" Marcus managed to say after what felt like an entire age of light.

"Hm?" the knight of Catarina mumbled turning his head towards the knight of Astora. "Oh! Pardon me, I was absorbed in thought." he said, his voice deep but friendly at the same time. "I am Siegward, a knight of Catarina." the man answered.

"Siegward?" the knight of Astora asked confused. "But you sound…forgive me. I thought you were a friend of mine." Marcus said, his hope crushed by the realization that Siegmeyer was indeed dead.

"It´s fine, hard to tell us apart with this armor, I suppose." the knight of Catarina said oblivious and then looked back. "Hm…quite a pickle indeed." he whispered.

The warrior of Astora shook his head, "What do you mean? The elevator is working." Marcus said distracted by the problem at hand.

"Have you ever walked near a white birch, only to be struck by a great arrow?" Siegward asked looking back at Marcus.

"Yeah, a giant archer fired some arrows at me, why?" the knight of Astora asked as he tried his best to put aside the memories of Siegmeyer.

"Well, if I'm not mistaken, they come from this tower. Whoever it is, I'm sure I can talk some sense into them. But I have to find a way up, and that's just the trouble. This lift only goes down, you see, and...Well, that doesn't get me anywhere...Hmm... Mmm..." the white knight rubbed his chin.

The Lord of Cinder looked at the platform and then to the roof of the tower. "Ahhhh…" Marcus said realizing the problem. "I get it. Thanks Siegward, It would take me a while to discover this myself." he said going to the elevator.

Siegward observed the knight step on the pressure plate on the middle of the platform and then walk off the elevator before it could go down. The ropes began to move with the platform, bringing a second one down to the floor.

"You see, there are two elevators. When you used the elevator I saw the second one going upwards, if it wasn´t for you I would spend a long time going up and down." Marcus said walking on the platform. "Shall we?" he asked gesturing for him to come along.

"Remarkable. I can finally continue my journey. You have my gratitude…" Siegward told stepping on the platform.

"Marcus of Astora, undead." the Lord of Cinder answered.

"You have my gratitude Marcus of Astora." the knight of Catarina gave a small bow.

"You have mine as well, you saved me a lot of time." the Lord of Cinder replied stomping the plate in the middle.

As the elevator ascended Siegward looked at his new friend with concern, "Marcus, I must ask you a favor." he said with a sudden seriousness.

"What is it? To spare the giant?" the Lord of Cinder asked amused. "Of course, he actually defended me from hollows. Although I had to show the branch for him to stop shooting at me…" he whispered the last part.

Siegward was taken by surprise, he expected the knight to immediately attack the giant archer on the top of the tower. "Really? This is quite uncommon indeed, most people would rush to kill a giant after the slightest provocation." the knight stated.

"I met some giants in the past…two of them were my friends." Marcus answered.

"Oh? Really? Do you still remember their names?" Siegward asked curious.

Marcus gulped, "The first one didn´t have one so I asked him if I could call him Smith since he was…well, a blacksmith. He agreed. The other was an archer and I think he would like to be left alone, he was a retired giant." Marcus explained.

"An archer? Could the giant on this tower be a friend of him?" the knight of Catarina asked.

"Probably not…Damn, the elevator stopped and I didn´t notice. Come on, we have to talk to him." the knight of Astora walked off the elevator and gestured for the other knight to do the same.

The knight of Catarina gave a step forward but accidentally pressed the stone plate in the middle of the elevator prompting it to descend all the way to the first floor.

"Oh! no, no no no! Just wait a moment! I will come back in a jiffy!" Siegward shouted as the elevator went all the way down.

Marcus watched the ropes move as the elevator descend with the white knight on it, he fought the urge to laugh at the scene, only allowing a small chuckle to escape his lips after the structure stood still for a moment.

" _Ah Siegward, you´re as clumsy as Siegmeyer…"_ Marcus thought smiling while the elevator came back to the top floor.

The knight of Catarina carefully stepped out of the platform, making sure he didn´t step over the plate again. Once he was completely on the main floor he sighed. "These elevators are very tricky. An accident could have happened." he said.

"Don´t tell me. I had died once because I stepped on the plate of an elevator when I was going to get out of it. I managed to grab a grid but since I couldn´t do anything else I jumped to my death." Marcus explained. "A lever would be more useful and safer." he added.

"I agree, friend. Whoever designed these elevators clearly didn´t think of these possibilities." the knight of Catarina replied.

Both knights climbed a set of stairs on one of the corners of the room that went alongside the wall to the highest level of the tower. When they climbed the last step they found a giant standing on the floor looking at something on the distance. The giant had a pale grey rocky skin with patches of green moss flourishing on some spots. His torso and waist were covered by a set of iron chains that went diagonally from the hip to the shoulder. Each foot was pierced by a large iron rod and both were heavily injured with bloodstains covering a good deal of the exposed flesh. Finally the giant´s face was covered by a plain wooden mask made of a single piece of wood.

"Heavens! Who did this to you?!" Siegmeyer exclaimed horrified with the giant´s state.

" _He´s a slave, some people still treat them like tools."_ Marcus thought frowning.

The giant lazily turned his head towards the duo, apparently not bothered by his wounds or the presence of strangers. "Who are you?" he asked in a monotonous tone.

"I´m Marcus of Astora and this is Siegward of Catarina." Marcus said gesturing to the knight at his side with his shield. The knight dropped his claymore and retrieved Dusk´s catalyst from his soul to show it to the giant. "I´m not an enemy. Siegward is an acquaintance of mine, could you NOT shoot him as well?" the knight of Astora asked.

"I help anytime." the giant said crouching to grab something on his right side.

The giant slave turned and offered a small white branch alike the one in Marcus´s possession although it was clearly not a catalyst.

"Are you not bothered by his state? Why would someone do something like this to this friendly giant?" Siegward said, his voice getting louder with each word.

Marcus accepted the new branch and turned it around to take a better look. "Thank you." he said turning to the white knight. "Take this, he uses it to differ friend from foe." the knight of Astora said.

"Marcus! Are you listening?!" Siegward shouted.

The Lord of Cinder sighed, "Can you PLEASE take this branch so I can heal the giant with my talisman?" he asked tired.

Siegward was caught by surprise, "Oh! I…I thought you didn´t care." he said embarrassed. "Why didn´t you tell me sooner?" he asked taking the branch.

"I forgot." Marcus answered sincerely while walking towards the giant. "Hm…I wish I could take off these iron pieces but I can´t so I guess all I can do is heal you." he said kneeling in front of the giant.

Siegward watched the knight summon a talisman from his soul. The Lord of Cinder quietly repeated some words but the white knight recognized them as the verses of the common Heal miracle. When the last word was spoken a golden circle of light surrounded Marcus, the lines slowly stretched outwards and touched the left foot of the giant, sharing the healing energy with the archer. The wounds began to heal but stopped after three seconds, the injuries were still present although much smaller than before, the areas around the rods were still red with visible flesh but the rest of the skin looked to be in a better shape.

The giant archer glanced at the healer, "Thank you." he said happier.

"No problem, you deserve it." Marcus replied standing up.

The giant returned to his constant vigil over the Undead Settlement and before Marcus could turn away the archer grabbed his giant bow on the right and prepared to shoot a giant arrow at something in the distance.

"Huh? What are you seeing?" Siegward asked walking towards the stone rail on the left.

Marcus stepped to the side so he could look at the area beneath them, he hung the talisman on his belt and summoned a pair of binoculars from his soul. The Lord of Cinder looked at the giant at his side and saw his firing a giant arrow at an unknown target, he followed the trajectory with his own eyes and realized the archer was aiming at the area around the birch tree. The undead knight used his binoculars and looked around until he found the targets of the giant.

An arrow landed on the cliff creating a large dust cloud in the area. When the cloud cleared Marcus could see two figures on the ground, one of them wore a black armor and the other seemed to be using steel armor. The black knight got on his feet first and rushed to the second knight. The former helped the later stand up and both ran to the right, only to be blasted by another arrow a second later.

"STOP! THEY´RE NOT HOLLOWS!" Marcus shouted giving Siegward the binoculars. "Birch tree." he said.

"Hm?" the giant turned his head to the left right just before firing nother arrow. "Friends?" he asked confused.

" _I don´t even know them."_ Marcus thought. "Just don´t shoot them!" he asked.

"Okay…" the archer said lowering the bow.

"They reached the end of the cliff." Siegward informed lowering the binoculars, he gave the object back to Marcus.

The Lord of Cinder sighed, "Why do you guard that tree?" he asked the giant.

"Friend asked me. Friend told tree belongs to princess." the archer answered still watching over the white tree.

"Princess?" Marcus asked looking at the giant.

On the giant´s left hand the Lord of Cinder spotted a peculiar thing. A light brown ring with a circular crest on top of it. On the crest it was possible to see the image of a hawk with open wings.

" _Gough…So Gough told him or at least his friend which told a friend which ordered a friend, etc…But Dusk´s tree? Why would it be so important to guard such tree? Are they so rare that they need to be…yes."_ Marcus thought. "I understand. Siegward, you said the elevator goes down as well, didn´t you?" he asked the Catarina Knight.

"Yes, the thing goes down to a dark room but a frigid beast lives underneath the tower." Siegward warned.

"Does it send chills down on your spine?" Marcus asked serious.

"I'm no coward, and I've a steady hand, but that thing makes my skin crawl." the white knight said defensively.

" _I`m not a coward but I´m afraid? How does that even make sense?!"_ Marcus thought. "Is there an exit in the basement?" he asked.

"I think I saw an archway but the beast is blocking it. Quite a problem indeed." Siegward answered.

" _Easiest type of problem, hardest type to overcome."_ the Lord of Cinder thought. " _Another ice monster? This does remind me of the chaos demons, they were trying to stop me from reaching Izalith. Could it be the same thing? If this is the case then we have another inversed thing."_ he thought. "Well…I need to gather the lords and I ran out of places to search. I´m going to take a look." he said grabbing the claymore from the ground..

"Wait! Are you really considering fighting it?" Siegward asked.

"If it attacks me first then the answer is yes." the knight of Astora answered going for the elevator.

"There must be another path." the knight of Catarina urged following the knight.

"Perhaps…but time is a luxury we can´t waste." Marcus answered lifting his foot to press the button of the elevator.

Siegward grunted something, "Wait! I´m coming with you." he said stepping on the elevator.

The iron pieces of the elevator creaked with the extra weight of a second person and continued to do so as the elevator began a descent. However, just a second later the whole structure shook with an acute noise. The platform dangled to the sides as a piece of metal fell to the base of the church.

"Wow!" both knights said grabbing on the rails to avoid falling to their deaths.

"What was that?" Siegward asked afraid.

Marcus looked upwards, the left rope was trembling as the structure at the top was forced to its limits. He looked down and saw a wooden platform on the side just a few feet below them.

"We will have to jump! There´s a platform below us!" Marcus shouted as the elevator shook again.

"What?! This is insane!" the white knight shouted.

"Slim chance of success is better than certain death!" Marcus said going towards the edge of the elevator. "This is a leap of logic!" he said jumping off the platform.

"Wait!" the Catarina Knight begged extending his arm forward but it was already too late.

Marcus rolled as soon as he touched the wooden platform. The structure held but the wood had signs of deterioration. When the knight stood up he stepped aside and looked upwards towards the broken elevator expecting the other knight to come at any second.

"Ready or not here I come! Raaarrh!" Siegward shouted while jumping off the elevator.

Instead of rolling like the knight before him the white knight landed on his feet. Due to the extra weight the wooden platform shook once and gave in an inch. Marcus grabbed Siegward´s hand quickly and pulled the bulky knight towards him. They passed through a small archway on the wall and stepped on a stone balcony just as the elevator and the wooden platform fell on the first floor.

"That was quite the adventure…" Siegward said catching his breath.

"I wonder if we can still use the lower elevator, I guess not." Marcus said looking around. "We have a problem." he said tightening the grip over his equipment.

"Can we take a break first?" the Catarina knight asked raising his back.

"Sorry! Someone needs our help!" the Lord of Cinder jumped off the balcony with his claymore and Crest Shield in hand.

Siegward walked towards the marble rail and looked over the area in front of him. He saw the knight of Astora running down the roof of a house just underneath the balcony. The knight of Catarina looked upwards and then to the left, he could see a plaza not too far away with many wooden houses on the corners and some fireplaces with wooden rods with wheels on top of them. In those wheels the corpses of hollows were tied, their mouths open in a silent scream even after their agonizing deaths.

A loud roar echoed through the plaza and soon the source came into view. Siegward felt his courage fade at the horrifying sigh. A large humanoid beast came from the left, its body was made of burning wood which expelled a threatening flame that covered most of the wooden skin, the head sustained two large wooden horns and the beast itself carried a large axe with both hands which contained the same dreadful flame of the monster. The monster roared again as it brought the giant axe over its head, however, before it could bring the weapon down the beast fell to one of its knee, dropping the axe in the process. The Knight of Catarina looked down and saw Marcus rushing towards the creature with little care for his own safety.

"I´m almost there! Behind you!" Marcus shouted running the fastest he could.

"No! You should have waited!" the white knight warned jumping off the balcony.

A person looked around after hearing the voices, they swiftly turned around and blocked a large machete with an unusually big charred greatsword. The demon hunter grunted when a smaller humanoid demon with twice their size brought down a second machete, pushing them down with a tremendous amount of force. The smaller demon was also made of charred wood but the inner flame was more contained when compared to the large demon, the head also sprouted two horns but the shape itself was more akin to a goat while the taller demon had some similarities with a bull.

"The Bull Demon!" Marcus warned swinging the greatsword at the wounded leg of the beast.

The bull demon was about to bring its massive fists on the demon hunter when the claymore connected with its charred flesh. The monster flinched and used the hands to avoid falling on the ground.

"I´m coming!" Siegward warned as he approached the battle with his large greatsword in hand.

"The demon hunter!" Marcus instructed while slashing twice the exposed face of the bull demon.

Siegward nodded, he changed directions and went after the demon hunter which was still struggling with the flaming capra demon. The hunter wore a leather coat and hood coupled with gloves and boots of the same material, none of which provided any significant defense against the hefty weapons of the demons. The giant charred greatsword was the only defense and offense the demon hunter had but it was probably more than enough for the task at hand since it was able to sustain the blows of the demonic weapons.

Siegward went for a quick downward attack using the momentum to further improve the speed of the attack. The capra demon, however, heard the warcry of the knight and swiftly jumped back before the blade could hit it. The demon hunter looked at the knight by their side and grinned after seeing the armor.

"Nice to meet you, onion knight." the huntress said gleefully, the voice suggested the woman was just over her thirties.

"I´m Siegward of Catarina and my armor doesn´t look like an onion!" the knight corrected.

"Oh? I thought…nevermind. Did you come to rescue me?" the huntress asked falling to her knees. "Nice timing, I´m too tired." she said taking a deep breath.

"Hey! You can´t give up yet!" Siegward exclaimed while watching the creature walk slowly towards them.

"Give me just a minute and I will finish the job." the huntress said staring at the demon. "Don´t say anything, he understands us." she warned.

"He…?" the white knight turned to the demon.

After hearing the conversation between the humans the demon gave a powerful roar towards the sky. It lifted both machetes and ran towards the tired huntress with killing intent. Siegward stood in front of the huntress, he placed the small round shield on his back and held the zweihander with both hands.

"Leave it to me, lady! I will protect you!" the white knight exclaimed.

"You don´t need to kill him, I will do it myself." the huntress warned.

"It is the duty of the Catarina Knights to protect the defenseless!" Siegward went after the demon with the greatsword by his side.

The white knight quickly ducked under two horizontal slashes of the beast and then went for a rising strike aimed at the demon´s exposed stomach. The attack hit the wooden skin of the monster, chipping some of the wood and releasing a small burst of flames from the injury. The beast lifted both machetes over its head and prepared to smash the knight into a mass of flesh but he simply stepped to the side and swung the greatsword towards the neck of the demon. Once again the blade connected with wood, the wound expelling more flames and bits of lava.

" _It is still alive?!"_ Siegward thought stepping back.

"Fight fire with fire!" Marcus shouted from far away.

" _Brute strength?"_ the white knight thought moving the sword in an arch but the attack was blocked by a machete.

The demon lifted the second machete and prepared a diagonal swing. The knight of Catarina knew his sword wouldn´t be enough to block the attack so he pulled back the zweihander and trusted it upwards with all the strength he had, the tip aimed towards the beast´s neck. Lava spilled out of the wound like a mini volcano, burning the old grass of the plaza and the ground around it. The beast released one of the machetes and tried to grab the sword to pull it off but before it could grasp the blade the knight forced the blade to the left in a burst of power. The blade cut off the wooden neck with relative ease snapping the old wood and releasing the flame within. The demon stumbled to the sides as it covered the wound with the left hand in a vain attempt to stop the "bleeding".

Siegward flexed his knees as he prepared to deliver the finishing blow, he intended to swing from the opposite side to decapitate the demon. But before he could swing the sword the huntress passed beside him and swung her mighty greatsword towards the demon´s chest. The attack was so strong that the monster was sent flying to the side with no resistance at all. A large stream of lava erupted from the mortal injury and covered the ground where the beast stood just a moment ago.

"Sorry, your sword was getting too hot." the huntress apologized while pointing towards the zweihander.

The knight of Catarina looked at his sword, the steel was a shinning orange and emitted a small amount of steam. "I didn´t even notice…Marcus!" the knight turned back to help his new friend.

"And to think I doubted your skills." Marcus clapped his hands. The knight of Astora was standing in front of the corpse of the bull demon, the body now flameless and lifeless.

"You defeated that humongous beast by yourself?!" the white knight said surprised, he could feel the adrenaline fading away while the knight stood tall and proud.

"She did most of the job, really." Marcus answered pointing a charred black greatsword at the huntress.

"As expected from you, Marcus." the woman said grinning.

The knight of Catarina frowned, he looked at the huntress and then at the knight. "You know each other?" he asked.

Marcus approached the duo while storing the sword in his soul. "Yes, she helped me fight a demon years ago. I didn´t expect to meet you here." the knight said offering a hand to the woman. "How is your son doing?" he asked serious.

The woman smiled after shaking the hand of the knight, "He´s doing fine. You both have my thanks, these last two were harder to kill." she said looking at Siegward.

"Last two?" Siegward asked looking around.

Corpses of fallen demons, now flameless, were spread across the plaza. One was cut in half, another was stabbed by its own machete while other three had their heads missing.

"You…you defeated them all?! That´s…that´s quite the performance!" Siegward exclaimed.

"You look so surprise, it´s almost cute." the huntress teased.

Marcus sighed, "I thought they were all instinct." he said looking at the ground.

"No, many survived the death of the Bed of Chaos. They died as time went on, though. You know, fire doesn´t burn forever. I´m just killing the survivors." the huntress said.

" _So it is very unlikely she´s still alive…"_ Marcus thought.

"Well…now that the battle is over I think it´s time for a little celebration!" the white knight stated.

"Celebration?" the huntress asked excited.

" _Oh Gods why?!"_ Marcus thought.

The white knight crouched and released his zweihander on the ground. He proceeded to search something inside his soul, a task which lasted far longer than he expected. By the time he found what he was seeking Marcus and the huntress were sitting on the ground, their equipment resting by their sides.

"Sorry for the waiting! Now! Let´s have a toast!" the white knight offered a barrel mug to Marcus, the huntress and then grabbed one for himself.

The huntress looked down at the content of the wooden mug, she could tell it was a type of beer but she wasn´t sure of its quality. Meanwhile Marcus lifted the visor of his helm revealing his charred skin to the others. The huntress only glanced at him once but the knight of Catarina seemed far more interested in his appearance.

"I know, I know. I look like a corpse." Marcus said tired.

"I don´t mind, really." Siegward replied taking off his helm.

Siegward had fair skin with no signs of the curse at all. His eyes were of a faded blue shade, his nose was fairly big but no to the point of being ugly, his moustache was like a patch of grass covering the area beneath the nose and the brows were equally as thick. Finally his short hair was black and left most of his forehead uncovered.

The huntress looked at the knight of Astora, "You actually look better than the last time we met, really." she said kindly.

"You don´t need to lie." Marcus replied looking at the other side.

"I mean it! Your eyes don´t look like a pair of black holes anymore." the huntress said.

"What?! What do they look like?" the knight of Astora asked eagerly.

"Light blue." the huntress and Siegward answered at the same time.

Marcus touched his face, a faint smile formed on his lips. "I guess we really do have a reason to celebrate then." he said.

"That´s the spirit!" Siegward said lifting his mug. "To your valour! My sword and the strength of…Heavens forgive me! I forgot to ask your name, my lady." the white knight lowered the mug and looked at the huntress.

"I am Mildred of Blighttown, a pleasure to meet you." the huntress answered with a smile.

"The sentiment is mutual. Let´s try again. To your valour! My sword! And then strength of Mildred! Long may the Sun shine!" the knight of Catarina cheered and then began to drink.

Mildred stared at the content of the mug for a second and then drank it all at once. She cleaned her face with the back of her hand and then exhaled, her face told Marcus that the drink wasn´t particularly good or bad.

" _It seems to be more than estus…"_ Marcus thought looking at the golden liquid, there was a strange smell coming from it but the knight didn´t know what it was. He brought the mug carefully to his lips and drank a sip to taste the strange liquid. He immediately coughed.

"Are you okay?" Siegward asked concerned, his cheeks were starting to get slightly red.

"I´m sorry but I don´t like it." Marcus said in an honest tone. "It´s probably my taste, though." he added a second later to reassure the white knight it wasn´t his fault. "What did you put in the cup? I felt the taste of estus but there was something else, something bitter." he asked.

"It´s a mixture of special grains and a little bit of estus. You don´t have to apologize, back in my homeland there were some whose disliked this type of drink." Siegward said but disappointment could be heard in his voice.

"To be honest at least I felt something else. I ate some plants and moss before but as far as drinks go I only remember the taste of estus." the Lord of Cinder stated.

"I could prepare a meal…" Mildred suggested, her pupils slightly dilated.

"No thank you!" Marcus quickly interrupted. "I mean, I´m in a hurry and unfortunately I CAN´T make a pause, even for a proper meal." he said in a more controlled tone.

"Searching for the other lords?" Mildred asked, her fingers twitching from time to time.

" _Other lords?_ S _he knows?!"_ Marcus thought. _"_ Yes, someone has to do it." he nodded.

"I see…" the demon slayer gave a faint smile as she looked down. "Forgive me but I need to go, it´s already past lunch time and I need to find something for Tommy." Mildred stood up and gave a small bow. "I hope we meet again, brave knights. And Marcus…" she looked at the knight of Astora with a frown. "…be careful. There are beings worse than demons in this land." she warned as she summoned a homeward bone from her soul.

"Wait are you referring to….and she´s gone." Marcus´s shoulders fell as the figure of the huntress disappeared after using the magical bone which could be utilized to bring someone back to a bonfire.

"It must be hard to raise a child in these lands." Siegward commented pessimistic.

"She will find something, she always does…" Marcus said serious while standing up.

"I really hope so…" the knight of Catarina yawned, "Well, I'm going to have myself a little nap. The only thing to do, really, after a nice toast." he sat on the ground with the legs crossed. "May we meet again in the future, Marcus of Astora." the white knight said and then immediately began to snore.

"How can these guys fall into sleep so fast?" Marcus muttered under his breath.

The Lord of Cinder looked around to see if there were any more threats but everything was quiet and still. Feeling no need to protect the knight of Catarina at that moment Marcus retrieved his trusty claymore from his soul. He turned his back to the sleeping undead and then resumed his journey.

" _I´m glad I didn´t need to interfere. He was actually quite skilled! Even still…how much should I help him? Hm…maybe just a tip if he takes too long to solve a problem? I will think about it if something happens._

 _On the other hand, I need to help Mildred with her cannibalism. She did restrain herself today, I saw her fingers twitching and the dilated pupils but I can´t tell if she will recognize me later. I couldn´t find the strength to tell her before, besides, she would probably deny it. There must be a reason, a strong one, to act as a anchor for her to use against her impulses. I can´t just tell her to stop feeding Tommy…her tummy."_ the knight rubbed the base of his helm.

"Now let´s see where this road leads me. DAMN IT! I forgot to ask her for directions!" Marcus exclaimed.

 **Author notes:**

 **I bet you didn´t see that one coming! Hahahaha!**

 **For those wondering Velka wasn´t talking with Marcus, he just thought about the most probable answer for each of his questions and replied as if the goddess were there.**

 **Caressing Tears is a tale of the many deaths surrounding the goddess Caitha. The Red Tearstone Ring´s jewel is said to be a tear dedicated to the undeserving dead while the blue "tear" is dedicated to those who lost loved ones.**

 **Siegmeyer and Siegward share the same voice actor and they sound exactly the same.**

 **The elevator that caused Marcus to suicide is the one inside the church of the Undead Parish in Dark Souls 1.**

 **The battle against the demons is a reference to Demon´s Souls and Bloodborne. Mildred fought using a weapon forged to kill demons while wearing leather clothes. The reason why Mildred isn´t half naked will be explained later.**

 **Mildred is a very strong woman, even in DS1. To wield the butcher knife a character needs at LEAST 24 strength. This means that even the "canon" Mildred can two-hand the Black Knight Greatsword which requires 32 strenght in DS1.**


	7. Warm and Cold

**(Firelink Shrine)**

Marcus successfully managed to return to the shrine in one piece. His mood, however, was far from high. He quietly went to Andre while storing his weapon and shield inside his soul.

"Hm? How can I help you? Did something break?" Andre asked.

"My pride, probably, some hollows threw shit at me. I want to ask you something. Do you know what is inside the tower behind the shrine?" Marcus asked pointing to the left and upwards.

The blacksmith rubbed his beard in deep thought. "I know that past fire keepers were led there after their duties were said and done. Must be a graveyard by now. And there´s also the bell of the shrine, you don´t need to ring it as far as I know." Andre informed.

Marcus resisted the urge to beg the smith to keep his identity a secret. "Anything else?" he asked.

"Sorry, this is all I know." the blacksmith shook his head.

"Thanks. Another question, have you seen a pair of knights? One with black armor and other with steel armor?" the knight asked.

"Oh, yes. I thought the lad was you." Andre replied rubbing the back of his head in shame.

"Huh? Why?" the Lord of Cinder asked intrigued.

"Same armor and shield." the smith sighed with his eyes closed.

"Same armor? Oscar of Astora?" Marcus asked hopeful.

"No, the lad was called Anri. He seemed pretty interested in you." Andre informed.

"Why? I have never met him." the Lord of Cinder rubbed his helm.

"He didn´t tell me, maybe he heard about you, who knows?" the bearded man shrugged.

The warrior from Astora rubbed his chin, " _Maybe someone spread my feats after all…or he is simply looking for someone from Astora, Andre told me the land was overrun by hollows."_ he thought. "What about the one with black armor?" the Lord of Cinder asked.

"As talkative as a rock." Andre said serious.

The knight crossed his arms as he went into deep thought. " _Hm…a quiet person? A murderer? Or maybe just hollowing?"_ the knight thought. "Okay. If they come back please tell them I´m going through the church with the giant archer. Please tell them to spare him." Marcus asked.

"Very well, I understand. Anything else?" the smith nodded.

"I found this red gem inside a fiery bull demon." Marcus said retrieving said treasure from his soul.

The gem was composed of three square stones fused together, one small, one medium and the last one bigger than the others. The core of the artifact radiated a faint light and various shades of red were mixed inside like fiery stains on a rock.

"Ah, I see you found one of them. This one is a Fire Gem, a rare thing to possess. It can be infused into a weapon to give it fire but its power won´t be affected by your skill with pyromancy. A shame, really. Any weapon in mind?" Andre explained.

"Just like the red titanite…So NOW you can make fire infusions." Marcus stated annoyed since the smith denied a "fire" ember in the Second Age.

"When you live thousands of years you need to learn something. My coals are good enough to make three types of infusion: Fire, as I already told you; Refined, slightly heavy and sharp and Raw, where the weapon gets reinforced but loses sharpness and a bit of weight. I learned lots of things during these past ages, I just don´t have the tools for everything." the smith explained.

Marcus took a deep breath. "I know how you feel. I wish you could teach me how to infuse gems but you know, I have a duty to fulfill." the knight gestured to the area behind him. "As for the gem, I don´t know. Maybe I should give it to someone else…" the knight wondered.

The smith rubbed his white beard "Hm…I could find some use for it. What do you say?" the old man asked.

"A special weapon?" the Lord of Cinder asked slightly curious.

"I haven´t decided yet but I have some ideas." the muscular man replied still rubbing his beard.

"I don´t need it right now and I have my pyromancy if something happens. You can have it." the knight placed the gem on the anvil.

"Thanks friend, I promise I will put it to good use!" Andre said taking the gift.

The knight nodded once while grabbing both estus flasks from his belt. "I need 6 blue." he ordered.

The old smith raised his brow, "Are you going test some of that magic?" Andre asked taking the flasks.

"I will use a lot of pyromancy soon and I can´t run out of stamina before finishing the task." Marcus told.

The Second Lord decided to organize his equipment while the blacksmith prepared the flasks. He placed a hand over his chest and then focused on managing the items inside his soul. Ever since the disappearance of most of his utility items the knight found trouble getting the right weapons in the heat of a battle. Not only his mind was slightly slower but the location of each weapon and shield was completely changed which resulted in a severe increase in the time required to retrieve said items.

" _I barely managed to get a black knight sword in time to kill the bull demon, one more second and I would have died. Let´s see…I´m constantly facing firebombs, burning fat women, explosive barrels, demons…Yep, I need a fire-proof shield. Now, which one? Black Knight Shield or the Dragon Crest Shield? The first is twice as heavy but slightly longer and I think a bit more resistant while the second is way lighter and easier to handle…Since I will be facing hollows most of the time I should go for the Dragon Crest Shield. I should also move some of the rings and the resins for emergencies…"_ the knight thought.

After sorting his equipment the knight took back his flasks from Andre and then went to the main area of the shrine. Marcus climbed the set of stairs that lead to the upper level and finally to the abandoned tower behind the main building. He glanced at the "giant tree" on the right but then turned his attention to the tower in front of him. The knight stood in front of the iron bars of the door and then took off the leather glove, he left it on the ground for the moment and grabbed an iron mace from his soul with the left hand.

The Lord of Cinder closed his eyes as he concentrated on the flame within him, it was like a burning core with many funnels coming from it reaching up to the tips of his toes and fingers. The knight of Astora channeled the flame towards his right hand, careful to not waste any precious energy in the process. After a moment a small fire ignited on the palm of his hand, signaling the link was successful. Marcus extended his arm upwards, moved his hand closer to the right corner of the upper horizontal bar and then closed his eyes again. The flame of the undead lord began to increase in size and dared to cover his hand when he halted the growth. The pyromancer channeled more power towards the fire to increase its intensity and heat to alarming levels.

At first the iron bar remained the same but then the material began to turn slightly orange and yellow in the middle and red in the borders. Marcus increased the temperature until the iron began to emit a hot aura of its own and then extinguished the flame on his right hand. He quickly held the mace with both hand and struck the hot metal with all his might. The iron gave in a few centimeters with the first hit but only broke after the fifth strike.

"Good, I still have 2/3 of my energy." Marcus said to himself as he grabbed the opposite side of the bar.

 **(Later)**

The knight of Astora twitched his fingers, it took more time than he expected but he finally managed to destroy all the main iron bars. He wasn´t exactly exhausted but his mind was pushed to its limit and his body couldn´t even ignite an ember anymore. The Lord of Cinder put on the leather glove and grabbed the Dragon Crest Shield from his soul and Ciaran´s Dagger from his belt and stepped inside the broken tower.

"I wonder when they built this place…" Marcus mumbled as he climbed a spiraling staircase.

When Marcus reached the top of the tower he noticed part of the roof and the right wall were broken but since there were no signs of battle he assumed the damage was just a product of time. He turned his head to the opposite side where he found an archway that led to the exterior and into an old stone bridge connected to another tower.

"Why build a tower if you´re going to leave it empty?" Marcus asked himself as he exited the first tower and stepped on the bridge.

The bridge was entirely made of old stone blocks and had small stone rails on each side which barely touched Marcus´s thighs and only continued up to a few meters. The middle had succumbed a bit and a small portion of the left side had crumbled. When the knight reached the middle of the bridge a gust of wind came from the left which almost made him fall to his death. Marcus quickly recovered his balance and turned to the right expecting some kind of giant. The culprit was a giant black crow of about six meters in length with large wings to propel its colossal body. The bird made a large turn to the left and then dived at the direction of the bridge.

Marcus lowered his weapons after realizing it was a giant crow. He extended his arms to the sides expecting to be grabbed by the giant creature but the crow aimed on the area by his side. It flapped its dark wings a couple of times as it descended and then landed on the path in front of Marcus with grace and precision.

"Okay…so no forced travelling this time?" he asked turning to the giant bird.

The crow turned to face the knight, it looked down at the human with curiosity. The bird tilted the head to the side as if in confusion.

"You? You! Caw! Marcus! Caw!" the crow cawed in a feminine voice.

"Snuggly?!" Marcus asked lifting the visor of his helm.

Snuggly was a talking crow Marcus met in the outskirts of the Undead Asylum during his return to the forsaken prison. She possessed a limited vocabulary but was apparently smart enough to make deals and trades. The bird, however, was just normal-sized when Marcus saw her for the last time.

"Snuggly! Happy! Happy!" Snuggly cawed while flapping her wings.

"How did you get so big?! You´re as big as the one which took me from the prison!" Marcus asked not believing his eyes.

"Caw! Old!" Snuggly cawed towards the sky. "Trade? Caw!" she asked.

The knight of Astora rubbed his eyes with the back of his right hand, it was easy to understand how someone like Andre or Mildred were still alive and sane but a crow? "How?!" he asked.

"Give me, warm or soft! I give treasure! Caw!" Snuggly explained not understanding the knight.

Marcus sheathed the dagger on his belt and rubbed his chin. " _Snuggly wasn´t teleported to this Age, she aged like everyone else and lived through all the cycles of fire._ _She grew…a lot! I thought she was just a talking crow but somehow she grew into this giant bird! But...why is her vocabulary as bad as I remember?"_ he thought. "Snuggly?" he asked.

"Yes?" the crow asked tilting her head.

The knight stepped back, "Did…did you learn any new words since we met?" he asked cautiously.

"Many! Caw! Many trades, many words!" the bird said happily.

"I see…" Marcus rubbed his chin. "I´m happy with your progress." the knight smiled at the bird as he placed his hand over his chest.

"Trade?" Snuggly asked anxious.

"Just a second." Marcus said still searching.

The knight of Astora retrieved an old armor with a red vest and cape, Marcus cut off the cape from the rest with his dagger and then placed it on the ground so the bird could inspect it. Snuggly took a step forward and then lowered her head to check the colored fabric. She rubbed her head on the finely-crafted material and then grabbed it with her right claw.

"Soft! Wait, here!" Snuggly ordered and then jumped to the right.

The Lord of Cinder watched the giant crow glide gracefully across the sky and land on the roof of the main building of the shrine. There she released the urn on a large nest made of wooden sticks and grabbed something with one of her claws. She returned to the bridge and landed on the exact same spot as before.

"Stone, for weapons! Caw!" the crow told releasing a black stone on the ground.

Marcus crouched to collect the ore, "A titanite chunk?! Thanks!" the knight nodded while storing the stone.

"You, many trades, good friend. I help." the crow replied. "My home." Snuggly looked at her nest. "Come back, I like, trades!" she said and then jumped off the bridge.

The knight of Astora observed the giant crow return to her nest. Snuggly folded her wings and then sat comfortably on the simple yet comforting "house". Marcus felt a bit of envy slithering in his heart but swayed the emotion aside with a shake of his head.

" _Snuggly has a nice nest. I wonder if she has any eggs, I don´t think I would be able to handle a whole family of them."_ the knight mused.

The knight looked upwards towards the top of the second tower. "The fate of the Undead…" he whispered going after the second tower.

When the knight reached the tower he noticed the door was already open. He grabbed the dagger from his belt and lifted his shield as precaution. When he stepped in he noticed he was standing in a small stone bridge that led to what he assumed was another elevator. Burning candles decorated every wall which revealed the absence of ground on the right and left. The Lord of Cinder carefully walked to the right border and looked down. More candles could be seen in below revealing the existence of at least three more levels without any kind of floor or platform between them.

"Could they be down there?" Marcus asked himself. "I should probably check the elevator first." he said standing up.

The knight stepped on the pressure plate. He expected the elevator to go down but the platform ascended towards the upper floor of the tower.

The Lord of Cinder stepped out of the platform and looked around. He was outside and far away from the ground. A set of stairs to the right was the only possible path and so he climbed them. At the top he found a giant iron bell hanging underneath a large roof that covered the entire top of the tower. The ground and pillars were old with many bricks cracked or missing. The knight spotted a corpse right underneath the bell, bent as if the owner was suffering intense cold at the moment of their death. Marcus approached the corpse and crouched to inspect it.

The corpse wore a set of clothes similar to the ones of the blind fire keeper, only they were torn and ragged in many parts. The eyes were covered by a similar mask but the metal had long lost its shine. A soul floated over the corpse, it was like a white core with innumerous grey tentacles sprouting from the center.

"A fire keeper soul. It looks a bit darker than I remember…Why are you here?" Marcus asked taking the soul with care. "Were you the one who called me?" he asked looking at the bell over him.

An echo came from the ground, almost like a whisper carried by the wind. There was an undead message appearing over the ruined tiles. Marcus turned his head to the right, he saw the silhouette of a person crouching by his side. He couldn´t distinguish the face but the transparent form, almost like a ghost, seemed to be wearing robes. The "shade" wrote on the ground with haste and by the time Marcus looked at the message all the words were already there.

" _Use my soul to heal the dark sigils. Give it to the fire keeper."_

When Marcus looked back at the shade it had already vanished. "Dark sigils? What are dark sigils?" the warrior asked but he knew there would be no answer. "Judging by the name it should be some kind of infection or curse." he stored the soul in his body for safe measures.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Marcus walked towards the current fire keeper of the shrine which was standing on the left corner of the hall leading to Andre. The maiden waited patiently with her hands clasped together in front of her body staring at the area in front of her despite her blindness.

"Uh, Fire Keeper." Marcus called standing in front of the blind woman.

"How can I help you, my sir?" the maiden asked with a faint smile over her face.

"This may sound strange but…what is a dark sigil?" the knight asked.

The maiden´s smile faded like a weak bonfire on a snowstorm. "A dark sigil is a wound in the body of an undead, a gap from which the soul of a person leaks and bleeds. Forgive my curiosity but why dost thou ask?" the fire keeper asked.

"I found a fire keeper soul, I think that the owner told me it could heal dark sigils." Marcus explained retrieving said soul from his body.

The blind maiden looked down at her hands. "There´s a tale…about a fire keeper who is said to have returned from the abyss. She is said to have soothed and accepted a dark sigil but I cannot confirm this." she said lifting her head.

Marcus smiled, "I guess the dark of the fire keeper was stronger than the abyss." the knight said. "How does the dark sigil look like?" he asked.

"The wound appears as a dark circle on the flesh." the maiden explained.

"Thank the gods, I have none." Marcus sighed. "Even still…could you accept it? Her soul?" the knight asked.

The maiden lifted her hands and formed a cup with them, the knight carefully placed the soul over them.

"Thank you. This is…a very unusual event. Fire keepers aren´t meant to be together. But if this is thy wish I will gladly follow it." the firekeeper brought the soul close to her bosom allowing her body to entirely absorb the soul.

" _The bonfires attended by the Keepers are special. They are linked to one another, and their flames never die. Yet never shall the Keepers of these flames meet..."_ Marcus thought.

"May I help thee with anything else?" the fire keeper asked.

"I feel bad calling you Fire Keeper." the knight stated looking away.

"Thou dost not need to be concerned, it is my duty to serve the flame and serve thee." the maiden answered but the knight could tell there was a bit of regret in those words.

"I mean, I don´t want to remember you as 'the fire keeper of the shrine'. I want to remember you by who you are and not by what you are. Each fire keeper is a different person, no one can say that you´re exactly like the other keepers." Marcus explained.

The maiden of the shrine felt an unusual warmth spreading across her cheeks, a feeling completely foreign to her and unlike the warm of the bonfire. Perhaps it was the presence of a Lord of Cinder which caused said emotion but the maiden couldn´t decide. However, before the sensation could grow it waned and soon disappeared amidst a torrent of ash.

"Forgive me, Marcus. But I…I don´t recall my own name." the firekeeper said ashamed.

"I could give you one, if you wish." Marcus answered quickly.

The maiden was taken by surprise, she didn´t expect such offer from a lord, the warmth had returned but this time in her bosom. "I…I don´t know." she hesitated.

"Don´t need to hurry, tell me when I come back." the Lord of Cinder waved his hand as he walked towards the smith.

"I need 6 golden sips, please." Marcus asked Andre.

"Did you get what you wanted?" the smith asked.

"Yes, took longer than I expect, though." the knight answered while going to the handmaid.

"I suppose thou art not interested in the key anymore, Marcus of Astora." the handmaid said with poison in her tongue.

"I´m sorry but I need these souls. Don´t give me that look, you´re the greedy one here." the knight warned.

The handmaid looked down, her expression hidden by the ash-covered hood. "I´m just trying to get enough to make out a living." she protested in low voice.

"I´m sure the key is worth more than 20,000 souls but there are two reasons why I didn´t buy it from you. One: I need souls to get stronger and link the fire and two: the way you speak and act, I cannot stand it." Marcus said, a few embers came off from his hand as he spoke.

"What dost thou mean?" the handmaid asked intrigued.

"You treat them like food and you don´t honor the dead. I wouldn´t be surprised if you had gotten some of your wares from the nearby graves. Be careful, greed will only lead to despair." the knight warned pointing his finger at the elder.

The handmaid frowned, "Then what I am supposed to do? Make a prayer for everybody?" she questioned.

"This isn´t necessary, just don´t disrespect the dead." Marcus shook his head.

"Your flasks are ready!" Andre called.

"I´m coming!" the knight said, "If you don´t change your ways I will be forced to find a new vendor." the Lord warned and then went to retrieve his flasks.

 **(Giant Tower- Border of the Undead Settlement)**

The knight of Astora entered the church with "Sif" over his shoulder. He sighed after seeing the wooden structure still intact.

"I wonder if this ice monster will be a big one or a fast one. As long as there aren´t any dogs with it…" the warrior shuddered. "…are you ready Sif?" he asked the heavy greatsword.

The Lord of Cinder stepped on the button of the elevator making the wooden platform descend into darkness. The elevator stopped on a cold and dark room illuminated by candles on the walls. The knight turned around to make sure there were any hidden enemies or paths but there weren´t any. He walked forward and descended a set of stone stairs which gradually turned to the right and into a larger rectangular room.

" _This place is so empty. Where are the chairs? The altar? It feels like they abandoned it long ago but the candles are still burning…could it be another time distortion?"_ the knight thought looking upwards. " _I can´t see the roof, this is bad."_ the knight spotted an archway on the other side with a pair of burning candles on the sides. _"Siegward managed to see the creature and walk out alive and unharmed…I can already imagine him peering from behind the archway…"_ the knight walked slowly and carefully to avoid making any noise.

 **(Flashback)**

Marcus exited an old broken tower and stepped on a degraded wall. The merlons on the left side were heavily damaged with some parts absent. The undead wanderer looked down at his equipment: an old and cracked iron chest plate which left the stomach exposed, a tattered leather waistcloth and ragged leather shoes. He rubbed the back of his head with his right hand, he had a helm a few moments ago but it was damaged beyond repair by a barrage of attacks from a group of hollows. He tightened the grip over his wooden club and black iron shield and walked forward while looking left and right.

After just a couple of steps he heard a thud, his arms lost their strength and he was forced to release his equipment. Like a doll without its strings he fell on the cold rocky floor of the wall, an arrow was stuck on the back of his skull.

 **(End of Flashback)**

The Lord of Cinder gave a large step forward and passed through the archway. He quickly lifted his greatsword with both hands and deflected an incoming attack from the right. The knight walked to the left and entered the candlelit room aiming to reach the center to get some space and a better look at the beast. It was humanoid but twice as big as a normal person and with a slender build when compared to the first ice monster. The creature carried an ice longsword and produced a chilling aura which created an ice mist around its body.

"Fast one, damn it!" Marcus shouted rolling to escape a jump from the beast.

The knight went for a downward chop aimed at the monster´s neck but the ice beast blocked the attack with its weapon and then retaliated with a strike of its own. Marcus was pushed back by the power of the attack and was forced to duck under a horizontal slash and parry another downward strike.

" _Too fast, this won´t work!"_ he thought with the back to the wall.

The Lord of Cinder received a powerful slap from the monster which sent him to the ground and disarmed him. The knight blocked a swing with his arm but the impact shook the very core of his bones and after a third impact the hand went limp and lifeless. He knew he would die, he had no time to summon another weapon but even still he rolled to the left and away from a deadly stab.

" _I need to see his moves, ugh! No matter what!"_ Marcus thought struggling to stand up.

The monster made a lunge with its icy blade but the knight sidestepped the attack and retreated to the middle of the room which was surround by a line of small pillars on each side. The beast approached like a mad and starved dog, when it reached the warrior it briefly stood on its legs and moved the blade to the left to charge a mighty strike. Marcus made the grave mistake of dodging too soon leaving himself exposed to the incoming strike. The Lord of Cinder was sent flying by the sheer force of the attack and slid across the ground like a doll.

" _Just…chill…"_ Marcus thought as the beast stood over him.

 **(Later)**

Marcus rubbed the back of his helm, he took a deep breath and then released it towards the sky.

"Did he really had to stab me five times in a row?" the knight sighed. "This is going to take a while…" he said opening the bottomless chest at his side. "Okay, blocking with a shield is not a good idea, need to be fast and agile, he can delay his attacks…I´m so glad I chose dexterity over strength!" he retrieved a curved sword from the box.

The sword had an undulating orange blade that reflected sunlight, making it look golden. The hilt was made of a dark material and was slightly curved upwards in the bottom. The knight grabbed Ciaran´s dagger from his belt and then looked at both blades on his lap.

"Gold and dark…Not dark, dark silver. Dark, silver, gold, dark, silver, gold…" the knight repeated trying to remember the names of the weapons.

 **(Flashback)**

Marcus entered an empty coliseum made of brown stones. Some bricks were missing and vegetation could be seen across the ruined ground and wall adding a feeling of abandonment but also hope. The exit on the left and some spots across the whole battleground had dark blue stains as if someone covered in goo had walked over the place with little to no care. The knight spotted someone on the center of the arena. The person was kneeling on a clean spot with their back to the newcomer. Marcus approached the person in silence not wishing to disturb them. He stopped by their side and looked at a small gravestone.

"It´s done, Manus is dead." Marcus said quietly.

The person looked at them with a glint in their eyes but if there was any more reaction it was impossible to see. The person wore dark leggings, gauntlets and mail with silver lines across every piece. The waist was covered in a long dark blue waistcloth that reached the knees while the upper torso and upper arms were covered by a cloth of the same color. The head, however, carried the most peculiar piece of equipment. The helm was tall, a bit curved on the top and dark blue, matching the rest of the equipment. The face was covered by a white porcelain mask with ivory locks of hair visible on the sides.

"You…you defeated Manus?" the woman asked, her voice somewhat old but not enough to be considered an elder.

"Yes, took me 10 lives, though. It would have taken many more if it weren´t for that wolf. I wonder…" he said looking at the small grave.

"You...! You found Sif?!" the woman asked standing up.

"Sif?" the knight asked confused.

"Sif, a grey wolf. He´s a companion of Artorias." the woman explained. "Where is he? Did he…" she hesitated.

"I don´t know, I saved him from some hostile humanity. There was a corroded greatshield near him and I think it was producing a magical barrier of sorts." the knight placed a hand over his chest.

The warrior retrieved said greatshield from his soul. It was V-shaped and in a very bad state. The once shiny dark-blue metal was now stained and the once proud wolf crest in the middle was now covered in goo and dark.

The woman touched the blackened surface with grief, the corrosion of the equipment weighing heavily over her mind and soul. "What about Sif? Where is he…?" she asked.

Marcus placed the shield in front of the small grave to honor the fallen knight. "While I was fighting Manus I found a summon sign on the ground. I quickly used it and for my surprise Sif answered the call. But since the summoning only lasts for a time he disappeared once the battle was over. I searched the entire Abyss for him but found no traces of him, I think he might be coming back on his own." the knight explained.

The woman felt slightly relieved, "Sif can take care of himself, he´s not an ordinary wolf." You have done us a great service, Marcus of Astora. I will never forget you." she said.

The knight remained silent, his thoughts deep as the Abyss itself.

"Is something wrong?" the woman asked.

"Ciaran, could you answer me a question?" the knight asked.

Ciaran narrowed her eyes, "What is it?" she asked suspicious.

"Would you want me to keep his death a secret and give him all the credit for defeating Manus?" the Chosen Undead asked.

The eyes of the assassin softened, "Don´t you want to receive proper recognition for your deeds?" she asked rather confused.

"I do but…Artorias fought until the very end, I could feel him struggling even during our fight. In fact, he asked me to defeat Manus in his dying breaths…I feel like he deserves some credit, to say the least." Marcus looked at the grave. "I killed Manus to save this world but…I cannot lie, I don´t want to be forgotten." he turned his back to the masked woman.

After what felt like an eternity the assassin finally answered, "…Artorias would have wanted you to be recognized." she answered.

"What about you?" he asked looking over his shoulder.

More silence and the mask occluded almost any reaction from the assassin. She stood still as she pondered over the question.

"I guess you want to keep it a secret." Marcus deduced after a while.

"…I don´t want to leave you with empty hands but I´m afraid I have little to offer you besides my eternal gratitude and my blades." Ciaran admitted ashamed.

"There´s…one thing you can do for me." the knight said retrieving something from his soul.

Marcus summoned an orange curved sword and a long twisted dark silver dagger. Ciaran instinctively jumped back, she bent her knees and prepared for an incoming fight.

"Hmph! So this what you want…I should have seen it coming." Ciaran said calmly.

"What? No, no, no! I don´t want to kill you!" the knight crouched and threw the blades across the ground. "I just want you to train me." he stood up.

The assassin looked at the weapons with the corner of her eyes and then focused her attention on the knight. "Train you?" she asked narrowing her eyes.

"When I fought Manus I realized how clumsy and slow my moves were. I would really appreciate if you could teach me your attacks and how to move more swiftly and effectively if possible." the knight explained.

"I´m not skilled in the usage of large swords, Artorias…" the assassin said quite saddened.

"I use a whole arsenal of weapons, the claymore is just my favorite." Marcus said retrieving a steel longsword and dagger. "Don´t worry about my safety, I died 104 times until now." he smiled.

"You count your deaths?" the masked woman asked intrigued.

"Each death is a painful experience from which I improve myself. One of the benefits of being undead, I suppose…" Marcus answered.

Ciaran grabbed her weapons from the ground. "Very well…do not expect any mercy." she warned entering a stance.

 **(End of Flashback)**

"Dark Silver Tracer and Gold Tracer!" Marcus shouted triumphantly raising both blades towards the sky. "I should repeat these names from time to time or I will end up forgetting them." he said standing up. "Alright, let´s see if I can still do all those moves." he said stretching his arms.

 **(Later)**

Marcus stepped out of the elevator and descended the same set of stairs as before. He looked at the archway and quietly approached it with weapons in hand. When he was just a few feet away from it the Lord of Cinder ran the fastest he could and then slid across the ground right as he was about to pass the archway. An ice-cold blade passed over his head coming from the left but by the time it hit the ground the knight was already recovering and going to the middle of the room. Marcus turned to face the creature only to see it jumping towards him with the arm stretched forward. He sidestepped the attack and then parried the blade with the Gold Tracer, allowing it to slide to the right as he moved on the opposite direction. The knight of Astora went for a quick stab with the Dark Silver Tracer aiming it at the exposed neck of the creature. The blade sunk deep on the intended target making the beast scream in anger and hate. Marcus went for another attack with the curved sword but received a powerful slap from the creature which sent him flying back. The Lord of Cinder, however, was prepared this time. He craved the curved dagger on a spot on the ground with exposed earth and allowed the momentum to move him in a half circle going from right to left. The knight remained crouched as he waited for the beast to approach.

" _Why it is taking so long for the poison to take effect?"_ Marcus thought rolling under the creature. " _The poison flows through the blood and spreads…Of course! His blood is frozen!"_ he swiftly slashed the back of the creature.

The knight gave a step back only to hit a pillar behind him. He ducked when the monster went for a straight punch and then attacked the exposed arm with his curved sword twice before parrying another slash.

" _And of course, the frozen blood also reduces the risk of bleeding!"_ the knight thought rolling to the side.

" _At least the cold helps me with my moves, I would be sweating by now if he was just a normal beast."_ Marcus thought.

As if reading the knight´s thoughts the monster breathed a cold stream of air at Marcus. The Lord of Cinder was caught off guard and was covered in an icy mist. Marcus felt his skin get colder and his muscles quickly getting stiff and numb. He tried to parry an incoming attack but his body was unresponsive and he was left defenseless against the attacks of the monster.

 **(One death later)**

"Poison don´t work, bleeding is very unlikely, need to cause some significant damage if I want to win and something to stay warm…" Marcus said rubbing his chin. "I don´t think any clothing will help me in this fight, I wish I had spent more time in the Painted World…but that´s not my home, I´m only an intruder." the knight sighed. "Is there any pyromancy I could use? Thinking about it can I still perform all of them?" he said searching the chest on his side.

"Undead Rapport…power within, iron flesh, flash sweat…flash sweat?" the knight grabbed an old reddish scroll. "This is the one, creates an inner flame which is so hot that makes the caster sweat profusely…this should keep me warm for a whole minute. However, it will also negate the benefit of the cold aura on my body. I need to finish this quickly and under a minute...maybe I could bait him to breath the ice mist again…" the knight closed the bottomless box.

 **(Later)**

Marcus entered the dreaded room with a large step. He swiftly parried an attack from the left with the Dark Silver Tracer and then trusted his claymore at the beast´s left underarm. The monster tried to slap the knight with its left hand but the Lord of Cinder swung his claymore at the same time and aimed at the exposed elbow. The combined force of the attacks was enough to break the frozen bone of the beast making it roar an acute scream. Marcus stepped back as he parried the barrage of attacks with both his weapons. He sidestepped a downward swing and then stabbed the neck of the ice monster with the dagger.

The knight of Astora spun around to dodge a quick stab. He used the opportunity to swing down the blade at the monster´s head, stab the neck again and then swing the greatsword upwards hitting the head. The beast swung the sword horizontally but the knight spun around with his greatsword extended forward parrying the attack as he went to the right. Marcus gave deep breaths as he retreated, all those moves were taking a toll on his body and he didn´t know for how long he could keep the rhythm.

The monster roared with all of its might, the creature moved the head to the side and the breathed a cold mist from left to right. However, instead of dodging the attack Marcus charged forward with the claymore over his head, the mist having little to no effect on him. He stabbed the right eye of the creature with the dagger and then cut off the head of the ice beast with a two-handed swing of his claymore. The decapitated body remained still for a second and then fell to the ground like a doll.

"And please! Don´t revive!" Marcus said breathing heavily and sweating.

The knight continued to gasp as he retrieved the dagger from the corpse. The flame created by Flash Sweat diminished and then completely disappeared seconds later allowing the knight to cool his body and breath more easily. The clothes underneath the armor were soaked with sweat impairing the movement of his arms and legs by a significant amount. Marcus flexed his arms and legs and then took a deep breath.

"2 deaths, not too bad. I thought it would take 5." the knight said going towards a large wooden door at the other side of the room.

Marcus opened the great door with some difficulty since his strength wasn´t at its prime. For his delight sunlight bathed his tired body and the area in front of him wasn´t as desolated as he had expected. The place seemed to be an old forest, the right was blocked by a large wall of rocks while the left had a mound of earth which effectively acted as a barrier. The earth was a dark brown with some leaves spread on the corners. A tree of medium size stood tall and proud on the knight´s left and another one could be seen not too far away on the left side.

"Oh! Marcus, you´re here." a familiar voice spoke.

The knight looked around in search of the owner of the voice. He spotted Mildred resting at a bonfire at the right corner just a few steps away from him.

"Mildred? What are you doing here?" the knight asked sitting by her side.

"Waiting for you, isn´t it obvious?" the cannibal said with a smile.

Marcus frowned, "No." Marcus replied honestly.

The demon slayer grunted something under her breath, "When I got back home I realized I didn´t reward you for your brave rescue. How could I be so ungrateful?" the woman shook her head. "I knew you would come here so I waited for your arrival. This is for you." Mildred summoned a large soul from her body, it was slightly yellow on the borders. "A demon soul." the woman offered.

The knight lifted his brow but took the soul and inspected it. "I thought a demon soul was supposed to be red and orange, where did you get this?" he asked looking at the demon slayer.

"I killed a large stone demon not too far away from here. I guess his flame was nearly extinguished." Mildred answered with joy and pride.

The Lord of Cinder lifted his visor and rubbed his chin, "Hm…very interesting." he murmured. "Thanks Mildred." he said storing the soul in his body.

"You´re welcome, if it wasn´t for you I would be demon snack right now. I still remember how we first met, how you offered me a purple moss and everything." the cannibal looked at the meek flames of the bonfire.

" _That was the second time we met."_ Marcus thought disappointed. "Mildred, I forgot to ask you. Do you happen to know the location of any Lord of Cinder? I couldn´t find any of them until now." the knight explained.

"YES!" Mildred shouted victorious.

The knight was taken back by surprise. "You do?" he asked.

"Ah! Sorry." Mildred rubbed her cheek in shame. "Er…Yes, I know the location of two, actually. You´re very very veeery close." the woman answered with a penetrating gaze akin to a hopeful child in her birthday.

"Really? Which ones?" the Lord of Cinder asked.

"There´s the Wolf Swamp and the Deep Church." Mildred informed looking away. "…I hate those places…" she whispered.

"The Abyss Watchers and Aldrich?" the knight asked and the woman nodded slowly. "Can you show me the way?" he asked.

"Follow the path through the forest, it will lead you to a clean swamp and then you choose where to go." the cannibal said pointing to her left. "We will need to be careful, there are some weird bird people walking around, they´re very nasty individuals." she said.

" _Bird people? Shouldn´t they be inside the Painted World of Ariamis?"_ the knight thought.

"So, are you ready?" Mildred asked looking back at the lord of cinder.

"Uh? No, not yet. I´m going back to Firelink Shrine, it won´t take long I promise." Marcus apologized.

"Need to prepare yourself, I know. Go on, I will be waiting for you here." the woman said disappointed.

Marcus lifted his brow, " _Why is she so eager to reach the lords? Does she hold a grudge against one of them? If she needs my help to reach them…then this means the area is very dangerous."_ the knight thought extending his hand towards the coiled sword of the bonfire.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

The Lord of Cinder sat in front of Irina, "Hello Irina, how are you?" he asked kindly.

"Ahh, Marcus of Astora, welcome back. I`m doing fine." Irina answered with a kind smile.

"I forgot to teach you another miracle. Hm…do you still remember the last one?" the knight asked.

"Saints of Carim are trained to memorize the tales of the gods. I too was trained to do the same." Irina said a little more confident than before.

"Oh, so your memory must be pretty good." Marcus stated summoning a scroll from his soul and offering it to Eygon.

The gargoyle knight read the tale in silence, "Not a very common miracle amongst priestess but…I see no problem with it." the holy knight said giving the scroll back to the knight of Astora.

"For a moment I thought you would deny it." Marcus stated opening the scroll. "Okay, the next miracle is called Magic Barrier." he said reading the title.

The tale of Magic Barrier wasn´t one of Marcus´s favorites but he understood why Havel came up with it. The rock-clad knight was right in in hating Seath and his magic, the blind dragon was a disgusting and selfish being who only cared about his research. Marcus, however, didn´t despise magic, in fact he was a full-fledged sorcerer by the time he linked the First Flame. In his eyes magic was like pyromancy: a tool which could be used for good or bad.

The knight read the tale and when he finished it he looked at the blind maiden expecting to see some sort of reaction.

"This tale is from bishop Havel, I heard it is commonly bestowed upon cleric knights but I never managed to hear the story…thank you Marcus." Irina bowed her head in gratitude but her face demonstrated a degree of worry.

"Is something wrong?" the knight of Astora asked deeply worried.

"I´m afraid I…I don´t have any more miracles to teach you." the blind woman explained disappointed.

" _Oh no, this is bad. Think of something, you idiot!"_ Marcus thought but his posture remained calm and relaxed.

"There are divine braille tomes." Eygon said breaking the silence.

"What is braille?" Marcus asked curious.

"A form of writing made for the blind. The pages contain several bumps in the form of dots which can be read by the blind." the gargoyle knight explained.

"Were you trained to read braille, Irina?" the Lord of Cinder asked hopeful.

"My mother taught me when I was just a few years old." Irina said as she remembered her past, a small smile sprouted from her lips.

" _Perfect!"_ Marcus thought while nodding to Eygon. "Maybe I can find a divine tome written in braille and then you could teach me the miracles." the knight suggested.

"I´m sorry Marcus, for causing so much trouble…If only I knew more miracles…" Irina said lowering her head.

"That´s no trouble at all. I will just need to keep an eye for a specific book." Marcus said standing up. "I will come back when I find one of those divine tomes." the knight promised.

"I pray for your safety." the blind woman held a talisman close to her bosom.

"I will surely need it, a friend of mine says she knows the location of two lords." the knight said going to the bonfire.

When the Lord of Cinder was about to teleport a yellow mist surrounded the bonfire and a new figure emerged from it. The person wore a metal plating and chainmail treated with silver with iron gauntlets and leggings with some of the shiny metal in them. The head was covered by a silver headband which held a silk veil that reached the end of the neck. The person´s face was young and clean of any scars or dirt and yet their eyes carried a heaviness only found in the most experienced of soldiers or kings. Marcus looked at the newcomer with curiosity, he felt a strange feeling of familiarity but he was sure he never met this woman before.

The woman glanced at the Lord of Cinder for no more than a second before going to the stairs at the other side of the room. She adjusted the position of her long rapier and then sat on the ash-covered steps.

Marcus looked at the bonfire, " _Mildred is going to kill me if I take too long. But who is she…?"_ the Lord of Cinder looked at the knightess which in turn was observing him. " _I better figure out before anything bad happens."_ he thought walking towards her. "Hello there, I don´t think we have met yet." he said trying to sound as friendly as possible.

"Hm? you're an Unkindled, aren't you?" the knightess asked.

" _I´m NOT an Unkindled."_ Marcus thought but refrained from saying anything.

"I am Sirris, of the Sunless Realms, former servant of the Divinity. Duties we each bear, but one's duty is a solitary affair. I doubt we've much to gain from fraternisation." the woman introduced herself.

" _You are Undead, as well? Then we've no time to fraternize. I have my mission, and you no doubt have yours."_ Marcus thought remembering his first conversation with Rhea of Thorolund. "I´m Marcus of Astora, undead…We may have our own duties but everyone has a duty against evil." he said.

Sirris couldn´t help but give a faint smile, "I suppose you´re right." she said.

The Lord of Cinder glanced back at the bonfire, "Mildred is going to kill me if I don´t come back. Forgive me but I have to go, goodbye." he said turning his back to Sirris.

"Blessing of the moon upon your journey." the knightess said.

Marcus stopped and then looked back at Sirris, "You said your name is Sirris of the Sunless Realms, right?" he asked and the woman nodded. "Okay, just to be sure. I don´t like to forget a name." the knight said touching the bonfire.

When Marcus came back to the old forest past the giant´s tower he found Mildred sharpening her giant black sword with a stone.

"You´re late." Mildred scolded.

"I didn´t say the exact time I would come back." the knight tried to defend himself.

"Don´t get smart with me, young knight. What were you doing?" the demon hunter pointed her index finger at the Lord of Cinder.

"Telling a story to a blind woman." he answered crossing his arms. _"Who does she think she is? My mother?"_ he thought.

"Oh! Sorry…I thought you were just playing around." Mildred apologized, "Are you ready to go?" she asked.

"Yeah." the knight replied summoning his claymore and the Dark Silver Tracer.

Mildred looked at the weapons with a raised brow, "What an odd choice of weapons." she said.

"At least I´m not carrying a giant slab of metal." the knight retorted.

The demon huntress chuckled. "I suppose you´re right." she said light hearted.

 **Author Notes:**

 **One more chapter, hell yeah!**

 **Marcus´s commentary about the lack of furniture in the church is a reference to the impractical buildings of many games: Areas with no beds, no chairs or without some important items.**

 **The official guide book for DS3 states that the crow of the shrine is rumored to be named Snuggly (a clear reference to DS1´s crow, Snuggly).**

 **The outrider knights are immune to poison/toxin and Vordt is immune to bleeding, hence why Marcus couldn´t do much damage with the "Tracers".**

 **Mildred´s gift is a reference to Demon´s Souls.**


	8. Tales of yore

The unusual duo traversed the old forest without trouble. From time to time the knight could see shadows moving between the trees or a shade over a mount but they were apparently keeping their distance. Marcus looked at the woman at his side and wondered how long it would take for her to search for another victim.

"Hm…Mildred." the knight called.

"You noticed them, didn´t you?" the woman asked.

"Yeah but I think they´re too afraid of us." Marcus whispered.

"Don´t let them fool you…they had tried to stab me dozens of times in the past years. I was just passing by!" the cannibal said annoyed.

" _Are you sure you weren´t going to eat them?"_ the Lord of Cinder thought. "Did you try to talk with them?" he suggested.

"Yeah, said hello and everything…and what they do? Use some sort of poison cloud on me." Mildred gritted her teeth. "I hate poison." she mumbled.

"I see…" the knight sighed, "You know, I´m surprised you still have these clothes." he commented trying to change topics.

The demon huntress looked at her arm. "They´re pretty comfortable and warm, I did my best to preserve them." she said proudly.

"I couldn´t just leave you naked." the knight said humble.

Mildred smiled, "You have a good heart, Marcus. Don´t let anyone take it from you." she said looking at him.

" _Then don´t eat it."_ Marcus thought. "I will do my best. Do you live here?" he asked.

The demon huntress lowered her head, "Yeah…" she said quietly. "It´s actually better than the swamp, excluding the bird guys. Not too hot or cold, plenty of fruits and even some pigs." the woman said more optimist.

" _Pigs…"_ the knight thought disgusted, "How often do you eat pigs?" he asked.

"Once every 3 or 4 days, If I find any." Mildred answered.

" _So I have less than a week to tell her."_ Marcus thought.

The duo continued to walk in silence, Marcus appreciated the lack of threats but the peace felt artificial. The forest was silent, the inhabitants chose to remain in the shadows, there were no animals running around. It almost reminded him of the Darkroot Garden, former Oolacile, a place where life struggled to survive the corruption of the Abyss.

Mildred stopped suddenly, "I smell something…" she muttered.

Marcus lifted his visor and sniffed the air, "Something rotten." he added.

"It´s coming from…there." Mildred pointed to the left.

The knight followed the woman through a path of earth, the smell got increasingly stronger as they descended a hill down to a lower level. Not too long after Mildred crouched and took a leaf from the ground. She frowned as she studied the leaf, releasing it a few moments later.

"Dried blood." the woman said standing up. "The body shouldn´t be far." she said walking forward.

" _Corpse?"_ Marcus thought following the huntress.

"Ugh! They´re still around." Mildred bit her lips.

Marcus stopped by Mildred´s side. There were two corpses in front of them, both covered in blood and with huge wounds on the legs and chest. The first seemed to be wearing white robes, now heavily stained by blood, while the other wore the remnant of a black armor. It was possible to see many large pieces of armor scattered across the ground and blood splattered on leaves and earth alike. Flies were flying over the corpses, drawn to the blood and still relatively fresh meat. Marcus crouched by the side of the first corpse and lifted the head with his right hand. The woman´s face was of utter terror with both eyes wide open as if the owner had seen a terrible demon approaching. The knight gently put down the head and moved down the eyelids, he moved both arms so they were perfectly aligned with the body and stretched the legs taking care to not damage anything.

"What happened here?" Marcus asked averting his eyes from the gutless torso.

"A cannibal." Mildred said punching the ground. "A cannibal appeared here weeks ago, I have been trying to kill them ever since but…I´m always too late!" she covered her face with both hands.

" _Hm? She´s aware there´s a cannibal around but doesn´t realize she´s the one responsible for all of this?"_ Marcus thought confused as he approached the woman. "Mildred…" the knight muttered placing his right hand over her shoulder.

"Marcus, if you find this cannibal…make them pay for what they did!" Mildred said uncovering her eyes, they were wet but the tears weren´t allowed to flow. "Promise me." she ordered.

"I promise I will do my best to eliminate the cannibals of this world." Marcus said serious. " _By my blade or my words."_ he thought.

Mildred didn´t react at first, she just kept looking upwards as if the knight was invisible. Before the Lord of Cinder could ask If she was alright the woman grinned and a pair of tears fell from her eyes.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." the cannibal snorted while cleaning her eyes with the back of her hand. "I want to do it myself but I´m always too late!" she sobbed.

"This is a forest after all, it is very easy to hide here. Besides, if you never met this cannibal then they must be very afraid of you." Marcus said smiling.

"Afraid of me…?" the woman mumbled confused.

"Yeah, if I were a cannibal I would be afraid of someone coming after my hide with a giant sword in hand. They´re probably being extra careful to avoid your wrath." the Lord of Cinder said. " _Your mind is probably making up some story or illusion when you´re eating people."_ the knight thought.

'They…fear me?" Mildred repeated as if in a trance.

" _Did I just trigger a bad memory?"_ Marcus thought deeply worried. "I guess you could be considered the guardian of this area, you´re just facing a smart but coward opponent." he said playfully.

"Guardian?" Mildred repeated the word, she shook her head to the sides and blinked. "I´m not fit for this job, I can´t even get one damn person." she said.

"Look Mildred, sometimes your first challenge is a big one, perhaps even the hardest, but if you give up now then you will never accomplish anything. You want to get this cannibal, don´t you?" he asked.

"Yeah…" the woman answered looking down at her hands, "…you´re right. I can´t leave them, not in this place, at least…I will catch that bastard, I swear!" she said closing her hands.

"Good." the knight said looking around.

The Lord of Cinder spotted a large book on the base of a nearby tree. He approached the tree and grabbed it with both hands. The thing easily reached a thousand pages and looked to be old but conserved. The golden yellow cover had the image of an unfamiliar symbol on the center. The knight searched for the title of the book but found none on the cover or the back, he opened on the first page but the paper only contained round bumps going from left to right.

" _A braille divine tome…"_ the knight thought looking back at the corpse of the maiden. " _I don´t know if you´re going to come back…but…just in case."_ he stored the book in his soul and retrieved a golden object from his body.

The Lord of Cinder looked at the item on his hand, it was a long orange gold shard which was a little large than his hand. He held it firmly on his hand and then wrote a message on the ground where he found the book.

" _Your braille book is in Firelink Shrine."_ Marcus read the message in silence.

"What are you doing?" Mildred asked behind the knight whose startled him.

"I! I´m taking a book." Marcus stated looking back at the woman.

"What if they come back?" she said serious.

"I left this message just in case." the knight pointed to the glowing words on the ground. "If they come back they just need to come to the shrine and ask for the book." he said sincerely.

Mildred crossed her arms, "Fine…" she looked away. "Do you want to do something with them?" she asked looking back at the fallen knight.

"I don´t have a shovel and I don´t think there are any coffins around here. I´m also not good with prayers." Marcus admitted. "Do you have any ideas?" he asked.

Mildred blinked, "No, no idea. Hm…yeah, no. I mean, just leave them like this." she answered shaking her head.

"Are you okay?" the knight asked worried.

"This smell is giving me a headache." the cannibal said rubbing her forehead. "There´s nothing we can do for them. Also, if we move them the rest of their organs will scatter across the ground." she explained.

"Now that you mentioned it…yeah, it would be more respectful to leave them like this instead of risking doing any more damage." Marcus nodded. "Could you just do me a favor? Can you align his legs and arms like I did with the maiden?" he asked pointing to the bodies.

Mildred looked at the corpse of the black-armored knight. "Okay." she said crouching.

Marcus took the opportunity to watch how the cannibal behaved. The woman pinched her nose with the left hand and used her free arm to move the limbs like she was ordered to. The knight raised a brow, Mildred´s eyes were focused on the limbs and not once she gazed upon the exposed flesh of the torso nor the bloody neck. Her eyes were relaxed but focused and judging by her expression she didn´t like doing the task. She grabbed the left arm, the last limb to be aligned, but kept holding it on the air instead of aligning it.

"Mildred?" Marcus asked.

Mildred placed the arm on its original place and did the same for the rest of the limbs, she stood up and stretched her back. "Let´s go, you have a lord to kill." she called.

"You didn´t align the body." Marcus warned.

"He failed to protect her, leave him." the cannibal turned her back to the knight.

The knight of Astora looked down at the corpse, he sighed quietly but went after the woman. "Lead the way." he said. " _No second chance."_ the man thought disappointed.

The duo went back to an old trail of earth, trees were not uncommon, the terrain was irregular and filled with stones and little sky could be seen from below. Marcus occasionally spotted the remnants of a forgotten civilization: broken pillars, stone archways and even a small wall or two. He tried to make a mental map of the ruins, imagining the overall layout, but he was unsuccessful. After a couple of minutes the knight spotted a broken wooden carriage on the way, all the wheels were broken and the back door was open. Mildred simply stepped aside and continued to walk but the knight couldn´t help but ask:

"A carriage? Were they trying to reach the lords?" Marcus asked touching the side of the carriage.

"You don´t know about this place, do you?" Mildred asked looking back.

"Mildred, I have been dead for over a 100, 000 years." the Lord of Cinder said tired.

"Oh…forgot about that." Mildred rubbed her cheek with her index finger, "This trail is called Road of Sacrifices." she informed with a serious tone.

"Sacrifices? What kind of…human sacrifices." Marcus said disgusted.

"Exactly." the woman nodded.

"But for what? Why and who needs these sacrifices?" the warrior asked looking at the carriage.

"It´s a long story. There´s a bonfire nearby, I will tell you everything when we´re there." the demon huntress said gesturing for the knight to follow her.

The duo passed through a small stone bridge large enough for a carriage, Marcus saw a tall archway at the other side with the remains of a wall on both sides. The ruins reminded him of Artorias´s graveyard where he fought Sif to death, needless to say the memory gave him discomfort. After passing through the archway the knight looked upwards, he could see a giant broken bridge over the distance.

" _Hm…Yoel, I wonder if he will come back. I need to warn everyone about him."_ the knight thought.

"There it is." Mildred warned happily.

"Huh?" the Lord of Cinder looked around.

After the archway there was a small descend which lead to the ruins of what looked like to be an large circular room. A bonfire was burning in the middle, acting as a beacon of hope for any undead. The duo walked down the hill and went towards the bonfire, Marcus looked around to make sure there weren´t any hidden foes waiting to ambush them but to his relief he found nothing. When the knight sat in front of the bonfire he felt a surge of warmth spread across his body, invigorating his muscles and restoring his stamina. Meanwhile Mildred walked around the bonfire and sat on the opposite side in order to make sure they wouldn´t get caught by surprise.

"Feeling better?" Mildred asked removing her hood.

"Yeah, it was quite a walk." Marcus commented stretching his legs.

"I could go a little longer, this sword does wonders to your legs." the demon slayer said placing the giant black sword by her side.

"I know, in my prime I could carry one of these too." the knight answered.

"What happened to you?" Mildred asked concerned.

"I don´t know to be honest. I guess when you´re dead for thousands of years your body degenerates." the Lord of Cinder said waving his hand.

"I guess so…huh? Did you bring your friends?" the demon slayer pointed behind the knight.

Marcus instantly looked behind him, curious as to who the cannibal was talking about. There were two knights walking down the hill towards the bonfire, one possessed the same armor Marcus was currently using and carried a shield and longsword while the other wore round black armor, although not as large as the armor used by Siegward, and wielded a small round shield and halberd. The newcomers soon noticed the duo at the bonfire and the knight in steel armor rushed to reach them.

"Are you…?! You are…!" the knight in steel armor stopped when he saw Mildred, his voice was young and he was surely in his twenties.

Marcus turned around, "Hm?" the knight mumbled, he noticed the man was completely ignoring him and was instead focusing on Mildred.

"Lady Mildred?!" the man in steel armor asked in disbelief.

The knight in black armor caught up with the group, he pointed towards the demon slayer and shook his partner´s shoulder to catch his attention.

"Oh? You know me?" the slayer asked quite intrigued but smiled nonetheless.

"It´s us! Anri and Horace! Don´t you remember us?" the knight in steel armor said pointing to his chest and then at the knight at his side.

"Little Anri?" Mildred blinked, "…but they´re just children…" she said shaking her head.

"We grew up! I thought they had caught you…" Anri´s voice faltered.

"Prove me you´re Anri." Mildred demanded, her eyes narrow and her gaze deep.

"You saved us from the apostles of the Deep Cathedral when we were just kids, I was injured and Horace was carrying me." the knight told the demon slayer.

"It cannot be…" Mildred stood up, "I can´t believe this!" she said hugging Anri with the strength of a bear. "You grew up so much! It has been so long!" she said with tears in her eyes.

"We thought we had lost you." Anri returned the hug and sobbed.

" _Wait a second, she saved them from the church? From a sacrifice?"_ Marcus thought rubbing his chin.

Mildred released the young man and looked at the person next to him, "And you must be Horace." she said going after him.

The knight in black armor barely had time to nod before the woman hugged him, "I…missed you." he said with a coarse voice.

"My children…there wasn´t a single day that I didn´t think about you." the demon slayer said releasing Horace.

" _You won´t thank the gods now, will you? I know you hate Izalith."_ Marcus mused but remained quiet to not ruin the moment.

"Oh my! Where are my manners?!" Mildred said ashamed, "Anri, Horace, this is Marcus of Astora." the woman pointed towards the knight sitting in front of the bonfire. "Marcus, this is Anri and Horace, both from Astora." she said.

"He´s Marcus of Astora?!" Anri said surprised. "The same Marcus from your story?" he asked.

" _This is bad…"_ Marcus thought, "What have you been talking about me, Mildred?" he asked serious.

Mildred grinned, "Yep, he´s the one! The brave demon slayer." she said proud.

" _Of all people…on one hand I´m glad she spread my feats but…she probably revealed who I am. Okay, need to remain calm and manage this."_ Marcus thought. "You should probably sit on the bonfire, you know, just in case." he warned.

"He´s right, this road is full of dangers." Mildred nodded. "Come on! There´s space for everyone!" she said sitting on the right.

The young knights obeyed, Horace sat on the left and Anri on the front. Marcus felt really uncomfortable, he didn´t know how to begin the conversation nor what they knew about him. Horace was quiet and Anri seemed to be too embarrassed to ask anything. Mildred had a faint smile decorating her lips and her eyes were locked on Anri as if expecting a reaction.

"So...how did you meet?" Marcus asked breaking the awkward silence.

"I thought you weren´t going to ask, it is quite a story." Mildred said with livid eyes.

 **(Flashback)**

Mildred was washing her hands on a small river which crossed an old forest, fresh blood spread and diluted amongst the water leaving a red trail that tainted the clean liquid. The woman made a cup with her hands and then cleaned her blood-stained mouth with a bit of water, rubbing the area with the back of her hand. The demon slayer stretched her back and then grabbed her giant sword which was laying on the side of a nearby tree.

" _It´s getting dark…I should go back."_ Mildred thought looking at the orange sky.

The demon slayer hummed a happy tune as she walked back to her home, she looked around and admired the view: tall trees with an occasional rock here and there, the sun´s rays bathing the wood and the faint sound of swaying leaves.

Mildred took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air of the forest. "What a beautiful place." she said stretching her arms to the sides.

The woman resumed her journey with a smile on her face. It wasn´t long before she heard something not too far from her position. Mildred frowned, it would get dark in a matter of minutes and she wished to get back home but part of her wanted to know the source of the sound, especially if it was a threat. She tightened the grip over her sword and followed the sound with caution. The woman´s experienced ears heard sound coming from behind a tree which prompted her to take cautious steps as she hid behind said tree. Mildred spied from behind her cover, her eyes widened when she identified the source of the sound.

Two boys, no older than 8 years old, were walking towards her. The one on the left wore a simple white shirt and brow shorts, his golden hair was a mess and filled with dirt while the other wore a ragged brown shirt and old shorts, his brown hair was slightly scorched and a scar ran across his left cheek. The boy with brown hair was helping the other walk since the latter apparently had an injured leg.

Mildred couldn´t stand by, she immediately stepped out of her cover and faced the boys with a worried look on her face.

"Oh my! What happened to you?!" the demon slayer asked covering her mouth with her left hand.

The boys stopped on their tracks, the one with brown hair lifted his free arm and pointed a bloody broad knife towards the woman. "Stay back! Or…or I will kill you!" he threatened but it was clear he was no match for the stranger.

Mildred glance over her shoulder and realized she was still holding the sword, she released the giant blade and took a step forward with open arms. "I mean no harm! Please, let me help you." she said but stopped when the boy feigned a stab.

"NO! You´re going to take us back!" the boy shouted.

"Back? What do you mean?" Mildred asked confused.

The blonde boy grunted in pain, "Horace, I don´t think she´s part of the church." he said with difficulty.

"We can´t trust her Anri, she could be disguised. Did you see the sword she was carrying? The knights of the church carry large swords too." Horace answered pointing the knife at Mildred.

"Horace, I can´t walk for much longer." Anri grunted.

"Please Horace, let me help him. I promise I won´t hurt you." Mildred clasped her hands together.

Anri looked at his comrade, "Horace, we have no choice." he said tired.

Horace looked at the woman with distrust and then at Anri´s left leg, there was a piece of cloth tied around the shin with a bit of blood leaking from below. He sighed, "Fine, but if you do anything funny I will cut you!" he warned lowering the knife.

"Thank you, I promise I won´t do anything!" Mildred said grabbing her sword.

Horace instinctively raised his weapon only to lower it when he realized the woman was storing the hefty blade inside her soul. Mildred approached the duo with a worried look on her face, she crouched and then examined Anri´s wounded leg.

"Oh…you will need some moss, I think I still have some…" Mildred said placing her hand over her belly.

From her soul the wandering slayer retrieved a purple moss clump of significant size. She plucked a small piece with her left and offered it to the blonde boy.

"Here, eat this." the demon slayer ordered kindly.

Anri grabbed the piece of moss and studied it, "What is it?" he asked looking back at the woman.

"Purple moss." Mildred said with a smile. After seeing Horace´s annoyed look she decided to give more details. "It is used to heal poison, We don´t want to take any risks, do we?" she said.

Horace eyed the woman with suspicious, "Is it safe to eat?" he asked not trusting the woman.

Mildred sighed, she plucked another piece of moss and munched for a while before gulping it. "Yeah, want more proof?" she smiled and gave a thumbs up.

"No, no. You convinced me." Horace said shaking his head.

Anri stared at the moss in his hand, the smell was unpleasant and he was already imagining the taste but nonetheless munched the moisty plant. The blonde closed his eyes as he gulped and used all his strength to not puke.

"I know the taste is horrible but it is a strong medicine." Mildred said turning around, she kneeled and offered to carry the boy. "Now, my home is not too far away. Why don´t you spend the night with me? I can take care of you, Anri." she said.

"Why are you helping us? You didn´t even ask us anything." Horace asked.

"Do I need to? You are injured and on edge, it is clear you were mistreated. I may not be a sorcerer but I´m not dumb." the woman explained. "Now let´s not waste any time, we don´t want them to find you, do we?" she asked serious.

Both kids gulped, Anri climbed on Mildred´s back and cautiously locked his arms around her neck. When the demon huntress stood up she frowned and looked back at the boy.

"Oh my…you´re so light! When we reach my home I will make sure to give you a nice meal!" Mildred grinned.

"Food?!" Anri said, his voice full of excitement.

Horace, however, was more cautious. He opened his mouth to ask but his stomach talked for him.

The demon slayer frowned, "Yes, my dear. I have enough for all of us, fruits, nut, plants…" she said.

Both kids licked their lips in anticipation of said meal, Mildred glanced over her shoulder and checked if they weren´t being followed, only trees and bushes filled the area. Horace followed the woman with knife in hand although he didn´t point at her, he wanted to trust her but his mind was telling him over and over again to be careful lest they become dinner. After all, she could be lying about her reasons.

"Hm…miss?" Horace called.

"Miss? This is the first time in ages since someone referred to me as 'miss'" Mildred said happily.

"You didn´t tell us your name." the boy told.

"Oh…I guess I didn´t. I´m Mildred, of Blighttown…" the woman looked at the sky for a moment. "…and you?" she asked.

"Horace of Astora." the boy answered.

"Anri of Astora." the blonde boy said tired.

" _Astora…the ruined land. Poor children…"_ the demon slayer thought saddened.

The rest of the trip was uneventful with no conversation at all since they wanted to remain hidden. The sun had almost set when they reached a mountain of considerable size, the group climbed a path of rock which went back and forth until they reached a cave on the side of the mountain. The entrance was high enough for a human to enter without any problems and sufficiently large for six people to walk side by side.

"This is it?" Horace asked suspicious, he couldn´t see far inside the cave and with the night coming he felt insecure and cautious.

"I´m deeply sorry, I just moved in. Dear Anri, wake up." Mildred nudged the sleeping boy on her back.

"Huh? Where is your house?" the confused boy asked looking around.

"The cave is my home, for now…I arrived a few days ago and didn´t have time to build a wall and a door, need more rocks to do so." the woman jerked her head to the side where rocks of different size were stacked.

"Are we going to sleep in a cave?" Anri asked, his voice filled with fear.

"Don´t worry, I will watch over you. Hm…I will need to put you down." the woman said crouching.

The kid stepped down reluctantly and went to Horace´s side. Mildred retrieved a wooden stick from her soul with one hand and a small jar with the other. The jar contained four red butterflies which moved aimless around their prison. The huntress put down the jar on the ground and opened it, one of the butterflies tried to escape but the swift hand of the woman snatched the insect right as it exited the prison and closed the jar with the other hand a second later. Mildred quickly brought the butterfly close to the stick and gently squeezed the insect´s abdomen with her fingers. An orange substance leaked from the bottom of the butterfly sparkling a tiny flame which ignited the torch. With the task done the huntress opened the jar and released the tired, but still alive, butterfly inside the jar and closed it again with an agility most would find unnatural.

"Did…did you just use a butterfly to light a torch?" both kids asked astonished.

"Hm? Never heard of flame butterflies? They produce fire when disturbed, very handy to light torches but can also burn entire houses if allowed. This is part of the reason why I chose a mountain." Mildred said storing the jar. "Now, let´s go in, it is getting dark." she said looking at the purple sky.

Mildred entered the cave with torch in hand. The children waited outside as the huntress lighted a couple of torches which were placed on top of some iron pedestals around the cave, once done she gestured the kids to come in which they obeyed. The inside was significantly large, measuring about 15 square meters with a ceiling which reached about 4 meters high. The kids couldn´t help but observe the interior of the cave: there were dark rock pillars, one on each side; the center of the ground was pitch black while the borders were dark brown and a large wooden board was placed on the opposite side.

"Welcome to my house." Mildred said spreading her arms to the sides.

"Huh…it is bigger than I expected." Anri said hesitantly, it was clear he wasn´t fond of the place.

"But where are we going to sleep?" Horace questioned.

"Just give me a minute." Mildred said placing her hand over her chest.

From within her soul the huntress retrieved two folded blankets, one white with black lines and the other completely brown. Mildred unfolded the first one and spread it on top of the wooden board, she put the second over the first to act as a blanket and last but not least she retrieved two brown pillows and put them on the top of the board.

"Here is your bed." the owner of the cave said with a broad smile.

Both kids approached the newly formed bed with a glint in their eyes, they were tired and hungry and the sight of such luxury seemed to draw them like a witch´s spell. Horace crouched and touched the blanket, it was a little rough but it was quite thick and would surely provide some warmth once underneath it. Anri was about to crouch too but his leg faltered and only Mildred´s mighty hand stopped him from falling on top of the bed.

"Hey, hey! I know you´re tired but we need to treat this wound first. Please, sit on the bed." the woman gestured towards the bed.

Anri obeyed and sat on the low bed with his leg stretched. Mildred carefully untied the cloth around the boy´s leg and frowned when she gazed upon the wound. There was a vertical cut which was a few centimeters long, fresh blood covered the area around the wound but fortunately the cut wasn´t deep enough to reach the bone. The huntress retrieved a red plump of moss from her soul and showed it to the boy.

"Do I have to eat it too?" Anri asked already imagining the taste.

"This one will help stop the bleeding." the woman answered plucking a piece of moss.

Anri sighed but took the moss nonetheless.

"Do you use moss for everything?" Horace asked quite curious.

"You would be surprised with the amount of useful plants that exist in this world. These types of moss are used since the First Age to reduce bleeding and cure poison. Potions and spells are invented every age but you don´t need to be an expert to use these and they can grow on many places." the huntress answered.

"I guess so…" Horace whispered.

Mildred grinned as she retrieved a plump of purple moss and a canteen from her soul much to Anri´s displeasure.

"Another moss?! Please have mercy on me!" Anri asked exasperated.

The huntress chuckled, "No, silly. I will just wash the wound and apply some moss to prevent any diseases, it might sting so bear with me." Mildred warned.

After patching up Anri Mildred retrieved a great variety of food from her soul: fruits, nuts, vegetables, seeds and even mushrooms. The kids looked at the food in front of them in awe and saliva filled their mouth in anticipation for the meal. The huntress grabbed a plate for both of them, simple cutlery, handkerchiefs and cups filled with fresh water. Anri was about to bite an apple when he realized the huntress didn´t have a plate for herself.

"Huh? Miss Mildred, aren´t you going to eat?" he asked.

"I had already eaten dinner before I found you." Mildred smiled.

Horace, however, had his doubts. "Mildred…is this your dinner?" he asked pointing to the food in his plate.

The woman shook her head to the sides, "No Horace, I´m telling the truth. You can eat as much as you want, there´s still enough for breakfast." she answered.

Horace grunted something under his breath, "Hm…thanks…" he murmured munching a mushroom.

The dinner was mostly silent, the children were too hungry to even bother thinking about their savior or ask questions much to Mildred´s pleasure. She watched them with a faint smile on her face, eyes taking notice of every piece of food taken, every satisfied grunt and every bite. Once the boys were satisfied the huntress collected the remaining food and stored it back inside her soul for later meals.

"Thank you for the dinner." Anri bowed his head.

"I don´t remember the last time we had this much food, thanks Mildred." Horace said glancing at Anri.

"You´re welcome…" the huntress looked behind her shoulder, the entrance of the cave was bathed in moonlight. Mildred sighed, "…I know this may be hard for you two but I need to know what happened." she said sitting on the bed alongside the boys.

Horace gulped while Anri shrunk behind his comrade, their expressions were filled with apprehension and fear and the huntress could tell that something horrible had happened to them. Since Anri was too afraid to talk Horace decided to take the initiative:

"Have you ever heard of the Deep Church?" the boy asked.

"No, you see I´m…I don´t pray to the gods." Mildred explained.

The answer unnerved the kid but he mustered all his courage to tell the rest of their story. "It is an evil church ruled by a monster. Aldrich, their leader, he…." Horace´s voice faltered. "…he eats people." he said and all color seemed to vanish from his face.

Both kids looked at the huntress expecting some kind of reaction but the yellowish lights from the candles swayed, revealing only the woman´s lower lips at that moment.

"A cannibal church…" Mildred muttered, her voice heavy and serious. "There´s a cannibal church…" she repeated biting her lips, blood drops fell on the rocky ground.

"…Mildred?" Anri asked slightly afraid and concerned.

The owner of the cave suddenly hugged both kids at once, each arm enveloping the neck of the boys and giving them warmth.

"You don´t need to tell me more, this is enough. I will protect you from those monsters, I promise, you don´t need to be afraid." the huntress said tenderly.

"I can´t…breath." Anri squirmed.

"Oh!" Mildred quickly released the boys. "I´m sorry! I´m sorry! Sometimes I forget about my own strength! Are you okay?! Did I hurt you?" she asked in panic.

The children coughed as they rubbed their sore necks. "We´re…fine." Anri said with an eye closed.

"Are you really okay? Let me see your neck." the woman insisted leaning forward.

"You don´t need to worry, really!" Anri said waving his hands trying to sound as polite as possible despite the pain.

Mildred looked back at the cave´s entrance again, "If you say so…" she said hesitantly. "Now, why don´t I tell you a tale before sleep? I bet you´re going to like it." she suggested light-hearted.

The kids looked at each other, "I´m not really tired…" Anri said.

Horace scratched the back of his head, "Me neither." he said.

"Alright!" the huntress clapped her hands, "This is a tale about Marcus the brave knight from Astora." she said with a grin on her face.

The mere mention of the name of their homeland sparkled interest in the minds of the boys, they instinctively leaned forward as if drawn towards an unseen force. Astora fell ages ago due to the curse and only a few descendants remained across the world. To hear a tale about a knight from this land was a rare thing indeed, even rarer than tales of dragon slayers.

"Marcus of Astora?!" both kids asked surprised.

Mildred chuckled, "Yes, indeed. But first, what do you now about the Chaos of Izalith?" she asked serious.

"Nothing, nothing at all." the blonde boy answered shaking his head to the sides.

"You see, a long, looong time ago, in the First Age the First Flame was fading. The witch of Izalith, one of the ancient lords, in an attempt to duplicate the First Flame ignited her own soul. However, the experiment went wrong and instead of creating a source of light…she created a being which produced an army of fire demons. Those demons preyed upon men and aimed to make the world their own. It was only after a long battle between Gwyn´s knights and the demons that they were contained, but not killed, in their underground city, a place where rivers of lava flowed across the ground and tree branches spread across the buildings." Mildred told the children while pointing to the ground.

Anri gulped while Horace felt his hand going to the dagger on his side.

"While the demons remained inside their city most of the time, the people that lived just outside their territory wasn´t safe from the wrath of the Chaos Flame. One of the witch´s daughter, a woman with a giant spider in the place of her legs, commanded some of the demons and demanded regular sacrifices to feed her family. Men, dogs, women…no one was spared from their hunger. This twisted routine continued for centuries with no visible end." Mildred said in a dark tone.

Sweat fell from the children´s face, their heart beat increased and fear was visible in their eyes as terrible memories and imagination combined to make terrible visions.

"Until one day…" the huntress said with an unusual brightness in eyes. "...a man descended from the surface. A knight in shining armor, strong shield and sharp blade. His name was Marcus of Astora, an explorer of sorts who wished to bring justice to the world. The journey was hard, he had to pass through a multitude of hollows, cannibal cooks, dogs and even some minor demons as he progressed through a labyrinth of wooden platforms and even a poisonous swamp. Finally he reached the demoness´s lair, a cave filled with spider webs that lead to the home of the demons, the lost city of Izalith. Of course, the passage was guarded by the spider demoness herself and she had no intention of letting him pass, in fact she wished to eat his flesh…" Mildred told the children.

Anri couldn´t contain his excitement over the story, "What happens next? Tell us, please!" he begged.

Mildred smirked. "The witch threw everything she could at him. She waved her flaming sword around, attacked with her spider legs, tried to eat him with the spider´s mouth and even spewed lava at him. But nothing, NOTHING, could stop him. The lava didn´t even scratch his shield and he dodged every attack with such skill that one would think he was actually toying with her. After a long fight Marcus finally plunged his large sword into the demoness´s bosom ending the terrible reign of the monster once and for all!" the huntress completed leaning forward.

"Yeah! He won!" Anri exclaimed lifting his arms towards the sky.

Horace gave a faint smile, "This was a good story." he admitted.

"And you know what´s the best part?" Mildred teased.

Both kids looked at each other in confusion. "Best part…?" Anri asked, "…that Marcus managed to kill the demoness?" he asked.

"That there were no more sacrifices?" Horace suggested.

"No, you see…" Mildred shook her head. "…this is not a story, this is history. Everything I just told you actually happened, a long time ago." she answered.

"What?!" the kids shouted in unison.

Mildred gave a heartful laugh, "Yes, I´m not lying!" she said with a grin.

"But how do you know this actually happened?" Horace questioned.

The huntress simply retrieved an emerald flask from within her soul. The container was filled with a golden liquid which emanated a welcoming warmth akin to a flame. She brought the flask close to her face allowing the faint light to bathe her skin.

"Do you know what is this?" she asked emotionless.

"An…an estus flask." Anri hesitated not believing what was in front of him.

"Does this mean…you´re undead?" Horace asked in shock.

"So? This doesn´t change anything." the huntress shook her head. "Undead or not I´m still Mildred." she said giving a faint smile.

Tears flowed through Anri´s cheeks, "Then this means you´re…you´re going to…" the blonde boy sobbed.

"Hollow?" Mildred asked, "Oh please, I´m dozens of ages old at the bare minimum." she caressed Anri´s head. "I´m here ever since the beginning, literally, the First Age." the huntress grinned.

Anri cleaned his tears, "…then…then…you won´t hollow?" he asked tearful.

Mildred smiled, "You don´t need to worry about this my dear." she said holding the boy´s cheeks, "You´re not going to see me hollow." she admitted cleaning his tears.

"Promise...?" Anri asked sobbing.

"Yeah, I promise." the woman leaned back.

"You knew him." Horace told the huntress.

"Ah…you´re actually very smart, Horace…very good. Marcus was a friend of mine, even though we talked only a few times. He was very kind, very kind indeed, even gave me these clothes." the huntress pointed towards herself.

Anri rubbed his eyes, "But what happened to him? Did he fight the rest of the demons? Did he leave the swamp?" he asked.

"This, my dear, is a tale for another day. You should rest now, tomorrow will be a loooong day." Mildred told the children.

"But what if they find us?" Horace questioned.

"I´m going to watch over you for the entire night." the huntress answered serious.

"But aren´t you tired?" Anri asked.

Mildred took a sip from the emerald flask, "Not anymore." she gave a thumbs up.

 **(Later)**

Mildred sat on the entrance of the cave with her giant sword by her side. The inside of the cave was completely dark with only a small portion illuminated by moonlight. The huntress looked at the half full golden flask on her hand and then gazed at the full Moon.

" _Good thing Horace didn´t realize this cave was once the home of a poisonous demon. I still can´t believe he managed to escape my grasp!"_ Mildred thought clenching her fist, she looked back at the cave, her eyes softening after hearing someone snoring peacefully. " _What am I going to do tomorrow? The Undead Settlement is definitively a bad place for them and they will be found in a matter of days. I´m not going to give them to Lothric, no, not those insufferable and self-proclaimed gods. Carim is bad, not going to take them to Anor Londo…I wonder if Catarina is still a thing, it has been some time since I had gone there, yes they are followers of those lords but I kinda…like them? No, scrap that, I find them amusing. They do seem to be fairly decent, however…"_ the huntress rubbed her chin.

"Mildred." Horace called from behind.

The huntress looked back with a frown, "Shouldn´t you be sleeping, my dear?" she asked in a demanding tone.

"I can´t, at least not like this." the boy admitted.

"Is the bed uncomfortable? Did you have a nightmare? Need some water?" the woman asked worried.

"No, I just want to talk." Horace told the strong woman as he sat by her side.

"Wait for the morning, we can speak during breakfast. Now you need to rest." Mildred insisted.

"No, I tried but I can´t, I need to do this." the boy argued.

"Fine…" Mildred sighed. "…what is bothering you?" she asked taking a look around to make sure they were safe.

"I´m sorry." Horace said suddenly.

"Hm? Did you do something wrong?" the huntress asked not looking at him.

"After everything that happened…" the boy shivered and hugged himself. "…I misjudged you. I thought you were going to eat us or send us back to the church. I´m sorry." Horace said in low voice.

Mildred smirked, "Marcus had told me to always be honest." she said hugging the child with her left arm. "It´s okay, I´m not angry with you, you were just taking care of little Anri. Speaking of which, promise me you will continue to look after Anri." she said releasing the boy.

"I promise, he is my best friend. I won´t let those monsters hurt him." Horace nodded.

"Good, now I believe it is time to go to bed." the huntress pointed towards the darkness of the cave.

When the boy was about to disappear amidst the darkness of the rocky home the demon slayer called him, "Is Anri okay with it?" she asked worried.

Horace gulped, "You…" he hesitated. The woman nodded, "I don´t know…" he answered.

 **(End of Flashback)**

"In the next day the church acolytes found us so I fought them to give the kids a chance to escape." Mildred said.

"I thought she wouldn´t be able to stop them…that she would…" Anri´s voice faltered, Horace placed his arm around the blonde´s shoulder.

"It takes more than a bunch of men to kill Mildred, she´s one tough woman." Marcus said confident.

"Those knights with those helms, I still don´t understand how you´re able to see with them…Speaking of helms, why don´t you both remove your helms? They can be very uncomfortable and hot." Mildred asked pointing to the survivors.

"Er…Hm…I always want to be ready, you see…a monster could attack us out of nowhere!" Anri dismissed the idea and Horace grunted something.

Marcus glanced at the huntress, her expression was serene but her eyes were reflecting the bonfire´s flame.

"Oh please! It has been so long, so long indeed. We´re safe here, you wouldn´t let a monster harm them, would you, Marcus?" the cannibal looked at the Lord of Cinder.

Marcus sighed, "I don´t care." he said.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Mildred shouted angrily as she leaned towards the knight.

"I mean, don´t be afraid." the knight said taking off his helm revealing charred skin and bald head, the only part that revealed traces of life in his face were his blue eyes.

Mildred bit her lips while Anri and Horace were taken back by surprise. Anri covered his mouth with his hand as he realized that the hero he admired for so long was close to hollowing.

"You…" Anri whispered.

"Yeah, I look like a walking corpse. Not a sight to behold I know, please don´t kill me Mildred." the Lord of Cinder whispered the last part. "You don´t need to keep it a secret, I can´t condemn a person just because they´re undead." he explained.

Anri looked at his best friend for an answer since he was still unsure. The black-armored knight nodded and grunted in response. They held their helms by the sides and after a small hesitation from Anri they both took off the metal pieces. Anri´s bald head had shriveled tanned skin and her eyes were of a faded light blue while Horace´s skin was greenish and his eyes were black. Mildred cleaned a tear which crossed her cheek but retained her composure.

"At least you still have your eyes." Marcus said trying to say something nice to ease tension.

"How…for how long have you been like this?" Mildred managed to ask with a straight face.

"We were both afflicted when we were 25 years old, many years ago." Anri explained.

Mildred looked down at her lap, she bit her lips again and this time a drop of blood fell on her clothes. "Well, you don´t have to hide it from us or anybody here!" the huntress lifted her head and forced a smile. "After all, this land is full of undead and I don´t care if you´re one or not." she said.

Anri sighed relieved, "Thank you Mildred, really. I was afraid you were going to despise us but…now that I think about it, you told us you were undead." the young man said rubbing his head.

"I take care of myself." the demon slayer said pointing to her face.

Marcus shuddered, " _You have kept your appearance because you have been regularly consuming humanity …and because you still have a purpose."_ he thought looking upwards. "Oh, I forgot to warn you about something." he said.

"Hm?" Mildred looked at him interested.

"I met a man at that bridge." Marcus pointed to the left and upwards towards an old broken bridge far away. "His name is Yoel of Londor, he wears dark robes and a huge shell on his back. Don´t trust him! He´s a liar, he tried to trick me but I saw through his lies." the Lord of Cinder advised.

The demon slayer frowned, "But how did you know he was lying?" she asked.

"Because at first he wanted to die and then all of sudden wants to serve me. However, when I stabbed him through the chest, which is what he wanted, he told me to die 100 times. Really? Didn´t he want to die in the first place?" the knight justfied.

"Seems a little odd…" Mildred whispered.

Anri looked at Horace deeply worried. "We…met a woman with similar clothes a few days ago." he told the duo.

"What did she tell you?" Marcus asked worried.

Anri felt cold sweat cover his face, "She had promised to unlock our true strength." he said.

"And you refused, right?" Mildred asked hopeful.

"We accepted the offer…" Anri lowered his head in shame. "I´m sorry! We were desperate! The challenges in our way, this journey…it is so hard!" the young man revealed, tears flowing through his face.

Marcus took a deep breath. "I know how you feel but this isn´t an excuse to accept this kind of offer." he told the young man.

The demon slayer gave a stern look to the knight. "Anyhow, how did she unlock your so called true strength?" Mildred asked.

"Just like how a fire keeper empowers a person except it was free. I had received her power thrice and Horace twice." the young man explained.

"You don´t receive power for free, not in this world at least. You have either lost or received something." Marcus stated. "Have you noticed something different recently?" he asked.

Anri rubbed his chin as he tried to remember, "Hm…no, not that I´m aware of." he answered but then Horace shook his shoulder and grunted something. "Oh! You´re right, it seems that the hollowing got stronger these past days, but I believed it is because we died too many times…" he said.

"Nonsense! Wait! Did you say that the hollowing got stronger? Oh no…" Marcus´s face was filled with dread. "Take off your armor." he demanded.

Anri was caught off guard, "W-what?" he covered his chest with both arms, "W-why?!" he said embarrassed.

"You´re very blunt, did you know Marcus?" Mildred teased good humored, "But I´m sure you have your reasons so I will let it slip. If you´re just doing it for fun, however…" the huntress grabbed the hilt of her giant blade.

"I want to check if there´s something on his skin." the Lord of Cinder explained.

"Uh…hm…! You can check Horace!" Anri pointed to his best friend.

Horace shrugged but began removing his chest plate, Anri decided to aid him to save time but his clumsiness only slowed down the process which prompted Horace to gently move away Anri´s hand in a clear sign he didn´t need help. When Horace had finished the task Marcus stood up and walked behind the greenish undead. He immediately spotted two strange black holes, one behind the left shoulder and one on the lower right of his back. The holes were completely dark and seemed to be filled with a black substance. When Marcus touched the left one Horace grunted in response and a bit of the dark murky liquid remained on the knight´s gauntlet.

"Dark sigils." Marcus stated rubbing off the substance from his fingers.

"What are you talking…oh gods!" Anri covered his mouth when he saw the gaping holes in his friend´s body.

Mildred decided to take a look too, she remained silent but dark thoughts filled her mind as she leaned forward to check the unusual holes. "What is this?" she asked in a demanding tone.

"Dark sigils, if I´m not mistaken. The Fire Keeper from the shrine said that 'A dark sigil is a wound on the body of an undead, a gap from which the soul of a person leaks and bleeds', I guess Anri has three of them. These sigils are probably making you hollow faster than normal." Marcus explained.

"Is there a cure?" Mildred and Anri asked at the same time.

"Maybe…I didn´t try it yet since I have no sigils but perhaps the Fire Keeper of Firelink Shrine can heal them." the Lord of Cinder revealed.

"Really?!" Anri asked full of joy. "Then why she didn´t tell us?" he asked.

"She has only gained this ability recently. Besides, you didn´t know about them until now." Marcus answered.

 **Notes:**

 **Now I believe it is very clear that I´m diverging from the normal story of the game. I wonder what kind of changes can happen in the next chapters…This is the kind of difference that I´m aiming for, not just a simple reference from the past game here and there but drastic changes in the outcome. Will Anri and Horace remain sane and have a happy ending or will they hollow despite Marcus´s efforts? Who knows?**

 **Mildred´s comment about Marcus´s heart is a reference to Demon´s Souls where a character named Thomas says "You have a heart of gold. Don't let them take it from you."**

 **Purple and red moss are items found in DS1 and DS3 and even though there are other ways of curing ailments players still use them frequently (except for red moss).**

 **Flame butterflies are found only in DS2 and are used to light torches. I thought about placing an undead bonfire inside the cave but then decided to demonstrate how Mildred uses her knowledge to solve daily problems.**

 **The next chapter shouldn´t take too long since I already have most of it planned in my mind. On the other hand college will begin soon and so I will have less time to write this story.**


	9. Seed of Curses

"I require 15,000 souls," the fire keeper said releasing Anri´s hand.

"Wait, what?! Are you charging us to heal him?" Mildred asked stepping forward.

Marcus held the huntress by the shoulder, "I don´t get it, why do you need souls to cure the sigils? I thought the soul was enough to do it," he asked being polite.

The blind keeper lowered her head in shame, "Forgive me Marcus of Astora but I cannot heal dark sigils without souls. Even though the soul thou hast given me possess the ability to cleanse the sigils, I still require the strength to do so…I´m deeply sorry," she bowed her head.

"You´re just trying to rob us!" Mildred accused pointing her finger at the blind woman, "I should have known you would do this…" she turned her back to the blind woman.

The Lord of Cinder calculated how many souls he had in his body. The Fire Keeper empowered him thrice just before his departure to the Road of Sacrifices, so he only had a few dozen souls at his disposal. He turned to Anri and asked:

"How many souls do you have?" the knight asked.

"300 and I think Horace has 1,000," Anri told Marcus. "What about you, Mildred?" he asked.

"800," the huntress grunted. "Are you really going to do this?" she asked in disbelief.

Marcus raised an eyebrow, " _She killed half a dozen demons and only has 800 souls? Where did she spend all those souls? Or…time distortion. Wait, how much time has passed between the rescue and the trip? Minutes? Hours? Days…shit,"_ Marcus thought. "Do you know any other way to heal sigils?" he asked the huntress and she shook her head. "By the way, how many souls do you need to heal Horace?" the knight jerked his head towards the greenish undead.

"14,000 souls," the blind fire keeper stated after touching the warrior´s hand.

"29,000 souls…that´s a lot of souls," Marcus sighed, "Hm…maybe…" he whispered retrieving a faint yellow soul from his body.

Mildred´s eyes widened, "The demon soul…" she mumbled slightly surprised.

Marcus crushed the soul on his hand allowing it to dissolve into his body. "Damn it! 20,000 souls…" he said uneasy.

"20,000?" Anri stuttered, "But such a soul…did you defeat one of the Lords of Cinder?" he asked.

" _Yes,"_ Marcus thought, "Mildred gave me this soul but no, this doesn´t belong to a Lord of Cinder," he answered. "Now we have around 22,000 souls, just enough for one of you." he rubbed the back of his head.

Silence fell over the shrine, Anri looked at Horace while Marcus glanced at Mildred.

"We should heal Horace," he said but the black knight pointed towards his best friend. "What? No Horace! You need it more than me!" the young man argued.

Horace pointed towards his chest, signaled that he was okay and then pointed towards Anri again.

"No, no. I can´t…I can´t afford to lose you too," the young man shook his head.

Horace grunted something, he raised his shield and then pointed at Anri.

"Protect me? But you´re the only one I still have! If I lose you, I…" Anri lowered his head.

Horace rolled his eyes and then looked at Mildred for help.

"We should heal Anri," Mildred stated her opinion.

"No, we should heal Horace," Marcus told the huntress with conviction.

"Anri has more sigils," Mildred argued pointing to the astorian.

"But Horace is in a worse state, he can´t even talk," the Lord of Cinder said.

"Horace is a tough man, he can wait a little longer," the cannibal told the knight.

"But Anri is worried about him, this is detrimental to both of them!" Marcus argued raising his voice.

"Look, I know them better than you. Trust me on this one," Mildred said slightly irritated.

The young astorian looked at his comrade, "Should we…?" he asked but the mute undead shook his head.

"You only lived with them for a day," the Lord of Cinder said.

"What about you? 15 minutes?! Besides, I´m older than you!" the huntress argued.

"Age doesn´t matter in this world! There are some idiot elders out there who die because they can´t deny a book. What matters is experience and what you learn from it," the knight replied.

"I lived longer than you, I have experienced this world from the beginning and I DID learn from my experiences! You on the other hand…" Mildred pointed her index finger towards her friend.

"That doesn´t mean I don´t have the right experiences. A journey, as lonely as it might be, has its moments and I have learned from them." the knight argued.

"Really? Have you really learned from them?" Mildred asked. "Then tell me, great sage Marcus, why do you choose Horace instead of Anri?" she extended her arms to the sides.

"Because if they get separated Horace would surely be motivated to find Anri, however, Anri would think Horace hollowed and he would hollow! If this happens Horace might hollow as well," Marcus answered irritated.

"Then why are you trying to heal HORACE?!" Mildred shouted pointing at the greenish undead.

"Because if we cure Horace then Anri would be sure that Horace is healthy and doing his best to find him. Anri wouldn´t need to worry too much about Horace and Horace would have an easier time motivating Anri. Also, each time Anri talks with Horace he is reminded that Horace is getting closer and closer to hollowing, which demotivates him. Besides, since Horace is closer to hollowing he´s more susceptible to frustration which means that any minor obstacle may be a huge burden on his mind and sanity," Marcus explained.

Mildred closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "Hm…I guess this make sense. Er…I lost control of myself…" the huntress shook her head. "…fine, cure Horace. But as soon as we get the rest of the souls we heal Anri," she demanded.

"Oka," Marcus said, " _This conversation…"_ the knight thought a little uncomfortable.

Horace grunted something but extended his hand to receive the souls nonetheless. After receiving the soul from everyone he approached the blind woman and kneeled in front of her. Souls were transferred once again and he stood up after a minute.

"Did it work?" Anri asked his best friend as the man turned to face them.

Mildred and Marcus held their breath, they weren´t 100% sure the ritual would work and the amount of souls required was significative. Meanwhile Horace grabbed his helm by the sides and then slowly removed it. His skin was no longer greenish and shriveled but a healthy light skin tone. A small scar ran on his left cheek, his face was well rounded, the nose and chin had a slightly protruding shape and his brown short hair was unkept. Mildred and Marcus smiled while Anri approached the man with caution not believing his eyes.

"Horace…?" Anri called just one step away from the cured undead.

"I don´t think this is an illusion," Horace said touching his skin, his voice was deep but also carried a gentle tone within it.

"You´re…you´re cured…" Anri hugged the bigger man.

"Is he cured…I mean, from the curse?" Mildred asked the fire keeper.

"I´m sorry but Horace is still an undead, I can only cure sigils, not the dark sign." the blind woman apologized bowing her head.

"I should know by now…" Mildred said disappointed.

Marcus rubbed his chin, " _Why would they want to put a sigil on the undead? What do they get from doing this?"_ he thought. " _A wound which leaks the dark of humanity leaving the host hollow…they´re spreading the dark,"_ he shuddered. " _I must stop them,"_ he thought. "I guess we need 7,000 souls. It is doable," the knight shrugged.

"You believe 7,000 souls is a small amount?" Horace asked intrigued.

"No, it is a very significant amount, but could be worse," Marcus answered.

"Oh…I see you have returned, safe and sound." a familiar voice spoke from behind Marcus.

The knight from Astora turned to face the person, Greirat waved his hand to his savior prompting the knight to return the gesture. However, the rest of the group immediately drew their weapons and aimed them at the thief.

"What are you doing? He´s not an enemy," Marcus said turning to his friends.

"He´s a criminal," Mildred said with bitterness. "They put this hat on thieves and murderers," she told the Lord of Cinder.

" _And you´re a cannibal,"_ Marcus thought.

Horace stepped in front of Anri, he furrowed his brows. "This mask…are you from the Cathedral of the Deep?" the black armored man asked raising his halberd.

"Cathedral of the Deep?" Marcus asked turning to the thief. "Care to explain, Greirat?" he said.

"Wh-what? No! I´m-I´m not from the church!" the thief stepped back in fear. "I´m from th-the Undead Settlement! I have never killed someone!" he said.

"How can we be sure?" Mildred asked tightening the grip over her massive weapon.

"I-I-I´m telling the truth! Please Marcus, help me!" the small man begged clasping his hands.

Marcus grunted something under his breath, " _I still need to check something…"_ he thought irritated. "Look, I still don´t trust you. In fact, I´m not even sure how much time you had spent in that prison, it could had been 10 years, 100 years, 1 week…Regardless of how much time you had spent in jail, I gave you a second chance, didn´t I? So you better use it," he said pointing at Greirat.

"So you´re just going to leave him, like that?" Mildred asked snapping her fingers.

"I agree with her," Horace spoke nodding.

"No, we made a deal some time ago. If he kills someone from the shrine or kick me off a cliff I will kill him. Oh, we will need to expand this. Greirat, promise me you won´t kill any sane person outside the shrine as well, this means you´re only allowed to kill, if necessary, hollows and monsters," the Lord of Cinder demanded.

Greirat gulped, "O-okay. I-I promise, I wouldn´t kill anyone anyway." he said bowing his head.

"Great." Marcus said happier, "Mildred, could you please put that thing away? You too Horace," he asked.

"I don´t like him…" Mildred whispered lowering her blade, "…but since you asked me," she said with a sigh.

Horace glanced at Anri behind him, "So…the mask isn´t exclusive to the Cathedral?" he asked.

Anri stepped forward, "Apparently, Mildred says so," he replied relieved.

Marcus turned to face the petty thief, "So, did you find anything on your trip?" he asked.

"Y-yes..hm…" Greirat looked at the huntress, his hands trembled and his body was prepared to run. "B-but I think there´s something I should tell you first," he gulped.

Marcus raised a brow, "Really? What is it?" he crossed his arms.

"I overheard your conversation and…" he stopped when he saw Mildred lifting the giant sword, "I was jus-just going to talk to him, I swear!" he shouted desperate.

Marcus looked tired at the demon slayer, "Mildred, give him a break," he demanded.

"Fine," the huntress answered storing the blade inside her soul.

"Let´s try again, what is it?" the Lord of Cinder asked curious.

The thief relaxed a bit due to the absence of the giant blade, "You see, I explored the place from corner to corner, f-found some items and weapons, some old ones but I suppose the smith can repair them…" he pointed to Andre. "…but at the end of the trip I came upon the…well, what it used to be the holy tree of the town," Greirat told the knight.

"Holy tree?" Marcus glanced back at Mildred, she was gritting her teeth. "Tell me more," he ordered.

"Ever since I was a child the people of the town used a giant spirit tree to seal away a multitude of curses that seeped into the settlement. Some of them were too dangerous to be left alone, you see…but it seems that the curses finally took their toll. Now the tree is a like a giant monster, it al-almost caught me today..." the thief shivered, "…I heard that you need souls to cure him so I thought that you might be interested in killing that rotted wood, for the souls," he explained.

"You think it can yield enough souls? What about the curses? Wouldn´t they leak?" Marcus asked.

"I-I don´t know. I have never seen such an infested tree in my whole life. But…if you leave it be, who knows what could come out of it? Maybe all the curses would be released," the thief said.

"That makes sense," the knight of Astora nodded, " _I didn´t have any problems with the souls of demons and such, maybe it is safe to use it for the souls,"_ he thought. "I guess we should take a look, right Mildred?" the knight asked slightly amused.

The demon slayer closed her eyes as she tried to remain calm, "I told them to get rid of that tree, these idiots…They expelled me like a damn sinner. I knew this day would come and that´s why I remained close by, to take care of everything," she said opening her eyes.

" _You endured living in a forest all these years because of this? Wow, you really have some control,"_ Marcus thought surprised. "So, can you show us the way, Greirat?" he asked the thief.

"S-sure," Greirat answered.

"We will be coming too," Anri spoke.

Marcus and Mildred turned to the young astorian, "What?" they asked simultaneously.

"No, it is too dangerous for you," Mildred shook her head.

"We already passed through the village, we know what is ahead of us," Horace told the demon slayer.

"We want to help, I just...can´t let you go by yourself because of me," Anri explained saddened, "I have caused you so much trouble until now, I want to make up to you, in some way," he said.

Marcus crossed his arms as he pondered over the decision, "I don´t think there are many difficult challenges there. Besides, we are more than enough to deal with this," he told Mildred.

"No, I´m not going to put you in danger," Mildred insisted.

"Mildred, you won´t always be there to protect them," Marcus argued.

"Yes, I will. I lasted this long and I have a promise to keep," the demon slayer retorted.

"Even still they´re not kids anymore. If you let them fight they will get stronger and be able to better defend themselves. That´s what you want, isn´t it?" the knight said.

The huntress bit her lips, "And what if there is something they can´t handle? What if things get out of control?" she asked.

"Then we step in," Marcus answered confident.

Mildred´s eyes pierced Marcus´s soul, "Will you take responsibility for your decisions?" she asked him with bitterness. "Will you do everything you can if something goes wrong?" she asked.

"Of course," Marcus replied. _"Oh gods they´re probably thinking that we´re family at this point,"_ he thought disturbed. "Besides, Horace said that they already passed through the settlement," the knight pointed to the black knight by his side.

The huntress looked at Greirat, "You should take off this mask, unless you want me to 'accidentally' kill you," she warned.

"Accidentally." Marcus rolled his eyes, "But she has a point, there are some hollows with this type of mask. In fact, why are you still wearing it?" he asked.

Greirat rubbed the back of his head, "Well…be-because...Because I…" he hesitated.

"If you´re going to continue like this then assume responsibility for your actions," Marcus warned.

Greirat looked at Marcus, "But I´m still a thief," he said with a bit of fear in his voice.

"And you´re still Greirat of the Undead Settlement. Now take off the mask," the Lord of Cinder ordered.

The smaller man fondled his fingers in anxiety, his eyes wandered to the huntress and then to the other two undead. It seemed that none of them would stand in his defense. Feeling utterly defeated the thief grabbed the mask by the bottom and slowly removed the piece of cloth. The thief was almost bald except for little tuffs of black hair on the side and on the top, leaving his forehead fully exposed. The chin and cheeks were covered by shaved beard, accentuating the large nose.

" _Not what I was expecting,"_ Marcus thought. "So, this is Greirat of the Undead Settlement," he said with a smile. "Now, we better get going, I don´t want to waste any time, I have a duty to fulfill," he said looking at the fire keeper.

 **(Undead Settlement)**

The group stopped in front of an archway leading to a cliff filled with giant arrows, the same area where Marcus was bombarded with arrows shot by the giant archer. Mildred had swapped her giant greatsword for a charred glaive and black shield with a V-shape while Marcus chose a metal halberd and the Dragon Crest Shield. The Lord of Cinder looked back at Anri:

"So, do you have the…purple phantom?" he said confused.

Mildred widened her eyes as she turned back, "He´s evil, kill him!" she said lifting the elongated shield.

The purple phantom rushed at them like a furious and frenzied beast. The man wore a faded golden armor with a pointed helm. The shoulders, waist and feet were all covered by old rags giving a decrepit touch to the owner. The phantom wielded a circular shield and a greatsword with a sharp undulating blade resembling a flame.

"Greirat, stand behind us!" Marcus warned as he lifted his shield and changed his weapon to a estoc, a sword with a very sharp and narrow blade.

Mildred lifted the charred shield to block an incoming swing but the phantom stopped the blade at the last moment and then swung it sideways. Mildred parried the attack with the handle of the glaive, redirecting the undulating blade to the ground. Marcus stepped forward and trusted his piercing sword at the man´s shoulder but he lifted the shield just in time and blocked the attack with ease. The huntress and phantom decided to headbutt each other at the same time but due to the phantom´s helm Mildred was the one to give up ground. Marcus took the opportunity to stab the man underneath the left armpit prompting the frenzied phantom to stagger back and hold the injury with his right hand.

"What´s next? Green phantoms?" Marcus asked annoyed.

"Those phantoms are just a bunch of hollows. Besides the usual invasion they put summon signs to lure innocents just to kill them. Very nasty bunch," Mildred explained while glancing back at Horace and Anri. "Stay back, we will handle this," she said with a warm smile.

"Don´t tell me he´s healing…" Marcus said rolling his eyes.

Mildred felt an unusual amount of anger fill her heart, the phantom had used a pyromancy flame to create a floating orange light sphere that emanated pulses of light at regular intervals. The huntress had a profound distaste for pyromancers, for the creators of pyromancy were the witch Izalith and her daughters.

"That thing heals anyone!" the demon hunter shouted charging at the phantom while wielding the glaive with both hands.

Mildred jumped and made a diagonal slash with the heavy weapon but the phantom jumped back in time and swung the greatsword downwards aiming at the demon slayer´s head. The huntress blocked the attack with the hilt of the blade. She slowly stood up ignoring the hollow´s efforts to overpower her. Meanwhile Marcus came from the right and trusted the sharp blade at phantom´s feet which forced the purple man to step to the side and out of the reach of the healing sphere.

"You have been fighting some black knights, haven´t you?" the knight asked with a smile.

"I have all their weapons. Too bad they didn´t want to help me," Mildred replied.

"Yeah…I fear he has a trick in his sleeve, if he uses it we will have a problem," Marcus warned not taking his eyes off the phantom.

"Do you have a plan?" the huntress asked slowly going to the left to prevent the phantom from attacking the young undead.

"Maybe," Marcus answered putting the shield on his back, he summoned a spear with a blade sharp enough to be used for slicing. "Let me kill him, stay on guard," he ordered.

"Fine, don´t disappoint them," Mildred replied jerking her head towards the trio behind her.

Marcus pointed the spear towards the phantom, the invader began channeling his pyromancy flame but the knight stepped forward and trusted the spear aiming at the phantom´s chest. The phantom extinguished the flame and held the greatsword with both hands to parry the incoming attack. The Lord of Cinder moved the spear back and then trusted again aiming at the phantom´s leg but he parried the attack again and gave a step forward to close the gap between them. Marcus moved the spear aside and trusted with the estoc but his opponent swiftly parried the attack and went for a vertical attack. When the attack was about to connect the knight swung the spear sideways aiming at the phantom´s exposed neck. The foe managed to move the blade to the side at the last second but the force of the impact staggered him leaving him wide open.

Marcus trusted the estoc forward at the phantom´s armpit, blood oozed from the wound as the phantom stepped back. Marcus lowered his weapons as he watched the phantom crouch.

"I know what you´re planning. Come on, try if you wish, I will still kill you," the knight warned.

The phantom grunted something as he stood up. He channeled the pyromancy flame once again and then after a few seconds brought the flame upon his chest. A red aura engulfed his entire body making it look like he was possessed by someone or something.

"Power within," Marcus said unsurprised.

Power within was a very powerful pyromancy, it could drastically increase the user´s strength and improve their body´s limits at the expense of gradually eating away their life force until their inevitable death. In other words, the pyromancy was a last effort to kill a stronger opponent or a tool to finish battles quickly.

Marcus trusted his spear forward to stop the phantom from casting another healing sphere, the invader gave up the plan of healing himself and went for a full assault against the knight. Marcus used the range of the spear to keep the invader at bay as he backed away from some powerful attacks. Once the Lord of Cinder reached a wall he quickly sidestepped and made the invader hit the wall, he swept the spear across the ground knocking the phantom from his feet and then trusted the weapon forward aiming at the man´s groin but the attack was deflected. The Lord of Cinder decided to step back and allow the phantom to stand up instead of continuing the attack. Marcus trusted the spear again but the phantom dodged the stab and then stepped forward to close in the gap between them. The knight from Astora swung the estoc from the right aiming at the phantom´s neck but the attack was deflected with such might that the sword was sent sliding across the ground.

The knight ducked under a horizontal sweep and then hit the phantom in the face with the hilt of the spear. Marcus threw his weapon to the right and then rolled after both weapons to dodge a diagonal slash from the phantom. After recovering from the roll he gabbed both weapons and made a quick spin to hit the invader in the helm with the spear stunning him once again.

" _22, 23, 24, 25…"_ Marcus counted in his mind as he dodged another sequence of attacks.

Marcus went for another sweep but this time the phantom jumped over the spear and went for a powerful downward strike. Marcus stopped the swing, stepped to the side and then kicked the invader in the chest. He took the opportunity to swing the estoc at the phantom´s neck, the blade connected with the chainmail but was unable to cut through the iron rings. The Lord of Cinder went for another strike but the phantom punched him in the face and then prepared to stab him in the chest. Marcus endured the strike and simply turned around to avoid the fatal attack. He returned the attack with a trust of his estoc aimed at the invader´s face but his opponent backed away just enough to avoid the blade. The invader went for a horizontal strike but the knight used the spear to deflect the attack down and then punched him in the head in retaliation.

" _41, 42, 43…"_ Marcus continued to count as he gave a step back.

The phantom shook his head, his face was covered in sweat and his breath was irregular. Suddenly a faint red aura began emanating from his chest leaving tiny trails of energy that floated towards the sky. He held the greatsword with both hands and then mustered all his might to raise the blade atop his head.

" _58, 59, 60…"_ the knight continued to count as he turned his back to the phantom. "So! Do you have white branches?" he asked carefree.

The invader gave loud war cry that made him look like a mad beast. He rushed towards Marcus with killing intent as he screamed at the top of his lungs

"Look out!" Anri shouted.

"Behind you!" Horace shouted a second later.

Marcus smiled as he stepped aside, the phantom tripped by his side and fell on the ground with a thud. The invader gave his last breath and then began dissipating in a purple mist. Marcus stored the weapon inside his soul and then stretched his arms and back.

"I´m really rusty. My hands and legs are numb," he said giving a sigh.

"You really are something," Mildred smiled.

Marcus casually returned to the group as he stored the weapons inside his soul, "So, as I was saying: Do you have the branches?" he asked.

Anri, however, was still worried. "Why did you turn your back to the phantom? He could have killed you!" he scolded.

"Really? I don´t think so," Marcus shrugged.

"Wait, you planned everything?!" Horace said in disbelief.

"The phantom was using Power Within, the spell lasts exactly 100 seconds and will kill the user or leave them severely weakened. I also noticed he was wearing a Red Tearstone Ring, which is a magical ring that triggers after exact 80 seconds of Power Within. When I saw the extra aura on his body I knew he had exact 20 seconds and that´s why I turned my back to him. I knew he would die before reaching me," Marcus explained.

Both astorians gasped at the revelation, "And you did all this while fighting him?!" Anri said astonished.

"But the battle only last about a minute," Horace argued.

"Yes, every blow I gave him was to buy time and speed up his death. I was really only paying attention to the second aura and his left hand since my plan would have failed if he had healed even once. Also, if I had tried to kill him I would have died because the spell increases his strength and stamina recovery, hence why I lost my sword in the middle of the fight," the knight explained. "His biggest mistake was to rely too much on the spheres, never rely too much on a single strategy," he said.

"What if he had managed to heal?" Anri asked curious.

"I would stab him again and keep him away from the sphere. The effects of the pyromancy would end in about 40 seconds forcing him to recast it, which gives me an opening. He would also lose too much energy with little results, I´m not even that tired," Marcus shrugged.

Horace pondered over the answer, "So…you used his spell against him?" he asked.

"Yes, basically," the knight nodded. "Some spells have heavy drawbacks, you just need to learn how to use them against the caster," he explained. "As I was saying, did the giant archer give you both a white branch?" he asked.

The astorians looked at each other, "We…" Anri started.

"…we killed him," Horace completed the sentence.

"Wait, what? I told Andre to tell you to spare him!" Marcus raised his voice.

"It has been a while since we returned to the shrine, we didn´t know," Horace justified.

Marcus grunted something, "I should have left an undead message," he covered his face with his right hand.

"Don´t be angry with them, they didn´t know," Mildred said.

"I´m not angry with them, I´m angry with myself for committing this mistake," the lord of cinder looked down in frustration. "I suppose this would happen, sooner or later," he sighed.

Mildred raised a brow, "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I suspected someone would end up killing him for firing arrows at this cliff, he was shooting anyone who doesn´t have a white branch with no warning at all. In fact, I had to stop him from shooting at you not long ago," Marcus explained looking at the young astorians.

Horace pondered over the information, "So that´s why he stopped all of sudden…" he mumbled.

"…but wasn´t he your…friend?" Anri asked uncomfortable.

"No, I just met him today and I don´t see him as a friend. But," the Lord of Cinder closed his eyes for a moment, "don´t attack a being just because they look scary. You should always ask them to stop attacking and wait for their reaction," he said.

"I´m sorry…" Anri lowered his head in shame.

"It´s okay, just don´t forget this lesson," the knight from Astora said putting his hand over Anri´s shoulder.

Mildred frowned, "Marcus, it has been a little over a day since we met," she warned.

"What?!" Marcus turned surprised, " _Damn it! Okay, calm down, you still have time to help Mildred,"_ he thought. "No wonder you scolded me," he said more relaxed.

"Yeah…" the huntress rolled her eyes, "The 'Time God' surely is doing a great job," she said sarcastically. "So, are we going to defeat this tree or not?" she asked looking at the path of giant arrows.

"Did you bring an axe?" Marcus asked.

"Of course," the huntress replied.

The group passed through the cliff without any problem while Marcus gazed at the tower for a moment, " _But even so, one day the flames will fade, and only Dark will remain. And even a legend such as thineself can do nothing to stop that…"_ he remembered the words of Hawkeye Gough. " _No, you´re wrong…"_ Marcus thought.

"Marcus," Mildred called slightly worried.

"I´m just remembering something. Let´s go," he said walking towards the others.

After passing through an old dark building and another small cliff the group reached the side of a stone building. They passed through a corridor filled with violet flowers, Mildred glanced at them and then crouched to collect some of them for later use.

"What are their benefits?" Anri asked curious.

"Great against the flu, coughs, fever, headaches, insomnia, sore throat, exhaustion…slightly helpful for healing wounds and it has a nice smell. Although you can´t use the roots or eat too many flowers or you will vomit," the huntress answered as she stood up.

Greirat turned to face the woman, "I…I didn´t know they had all these benefits," he commented.

"Of course you didn´t," Mildred replied in a harsh tone, "People rely too much on their estus, miracles, spells and magical potions and put all kinds of useful plants as decoration. You would be surprised with how many times I had seen someone die with the medicine by their side," she grunted.

"You should open a shop," Marcus recommended.

"A shop?" the huntress asked intrigued, "Well…maybe…maybe when I finish what I started a long time ago," she said looking away. "One day, perhaps…" she said wishful.

"It isn´t wrong to have other goals, you know?" the Lord of Cinder told the huntress.

Mildred looked down, "Will I ever finish this?" she asked looking upwards.

"It seems so, don´t give up now you´re almost there," Marcus said.

Mildred bit her lips, "Yeah, I guess you´re right. I travelled around this world countless times and now there´s little to be done. Maybe I really should open a shop someday," she said turning back to the knight.

"Could you send me some flowers after you open your shop?" the knight asked.

Mildred frowned, "Marcus…okay, I will send you the best ones," she said giving a faint smile.

"Thanks," Marcus bowed to the huntress.

They proceeded forward without further interruptions. The group reached the end of the corridor, on the right there was a large set of stairs leading to a lower level and on the left there was a plaza filled with violet flowers and buildings on both sides with a great wooden door at the opposite side.

"This is the place, that thing over there…that´s the tree," Greirat pointed to the left corner of the plaza.

Marcus summoned his binoculars and took a look at the accursed tree. It was stationed on the left of the great door and seemed to be dormant. The thing was mostly grey with very few dark green spots visible in certain areas. The tree was at least 15 meters tall and the trunk was quite robust with many gnarled branches on the top.

"Okay Greirat, you can go back to the shrine," Marcus said.

The thief gave a small nod, "V-Very well, G-good luck," he said before turning his back to the knight.

The group patiently waited for the thief to leave the area prompting the young undead to look at their seniors for answers.

"Ahm...what are we waiting for?" Anri asked confused.

Marcus turned to the young astorian, "How much fighting experience do you both have?" he asked.

Anri looked down, "Very little…Although we faced many dangers after leaving Mildred there wasn´t anything particularly dangerous, undead were rare at the time and we found only a few before our death. Most of our experience come from our journey on the High Wall and this village," he said.

"And what did you learn from this?" the Lord of Cinder asked.

"That I´m not good in combat. That even a common hollow can overpower me," Anri said demotivated.

"Really? Nothing else?" Marcus asked. "What about you, Horace?" he asked turning to the black knight.

"I discovered that I`m not fond of kitchens nor undead dogs…" Horace grunted. "…and that some hollows still retain some habits. Those knights…I wouldn´t ever discover they´re hollow without taking off their helms," he explained.

Marcus rolled his eyes, "Well…it is true that some hollows retain some part of their memories, old habits and routines, but that´s not what I wanted to hear. Did you learn how to fight those hollows?" he asked.

Mildred looked at the giant tree at the other side of the plaza, "Why are you…Is that what you´re planning?" she turned towards the veteran knight.

"What do you think?" the Lord of Cinder asked, he expected a denial and a heavy blade upon his skull.

"Too many," the huntress frowned.

"Hm…excuse me, Marcus. But…what are you talking about?" Anri interrupted their conversation.

"Take a look," Marcus offered his binoculars to the young astorian who accepted it. "What do you see near the tree?" he asked.

Anri gulped, "Four hollows and they´re…praying to the tree?" he asked confused while offering the binoculars to Horace.

"Wrong, five hollows. There´s one on the right." Marcus pointed at a lonely hollow in the distance. "Can you both take care of them? You told me you fought these villagers before," he said.

Horace gave back the binoculars, "Yes but the worst we faced were three at the same time and Anri…" the astorian hesitated.

Marcus sighed, "Okay, I will teach you three tips to survive a group of enemies. One: Two dead enemies is better than five wounded enemies. Unless they can´t attack you anymore you have to keep an eye on them, in this case it is better to finish off your opponent before focusing on the next target," the knight said.

"But then the rest will overwhelm you." Horace argued.

"Not if you keep your distance, the problem with wounded enemies is that they´re still a threat, they still block your way and distract you. Don´t underestimate the strength of someone, some don´t know when to give up. Second tip: If you find yourself being surrounded, don´t let them get too close. Charge at the nearest enemy and break the circle. Once you defeat your target get some distance and have everyone in front of you," he said.

"But if I charge at the first one the rest will kill me," Anri protested.

"That´s why you need to kill or injury your target in a single strike as you break through. Kill it if possible or incapacitate them. You can bash your shield at their face, push them aside, anything that moves them out of the way is good enough if you can´t kill them. Third tip: When fighting a group, NEVER run past them. Only retreat to the way you came, if you go past them not only you will go into an unexplored area but you might attract other enemies or fall into a trap," Marcus explained.

"Don´t you think 5 enemies is too much for them?" Mildred gritted her teeth.

Marcus stared at the huntress annoyed with her behavior. "Okay, so what´s your suggestion?" he asked sighing.

"One on one. You take care of the rest while I kill the tree." Mildred ordered.

"Two on two and I watch over them," Marcus suggested.

"Two on two and you kill the tree," the huntress said.

"No, you´re going to kill all of them. Two on two and I have a bow ready to fire," Marcus said retrieving a dark longbow from his soul.

"How good are you with bows?" the huntress asked doubtful.

Marcus summoned a wooden arrow and gave the binoculars to Mildred. "I´m going to kill the hollow on the right," he said.

"Shoot him on the head and we will do it your way," she demanded.

"Okay…" Marcus said, " _Can I do it fast enough?"_ he thought worried.

The Lord of Cinder aimed the projectile at the hollow on the right corner, judged the wind and distance and then fired the arrow upwards. Two seconds later the hollow fell to the ground, black blood covering his skull. Mildred lowered the binoculars and closed her eyes for a split second.

"Very well, you´re good enough with a bow," the huntress said giving back the binoculars.

"I could have done it faster in the past," Marcus said summoning a quiver and putting it on his back. "Alright, here´s the plan. I will provoke the hollows from far away and we will gather them at the right corner while Mildred deals with the tree on the left corner. I will only step in if something really bad happens, you two will have to take care of the hollows by yourselves," Marcus explained. "Any questions?" he asked.

"What if we can´t deal with them?" Anri asked worried. "What if we fail?" he insisted.

" _Then Mildred will behead me,_ " Marcus thought. "If you keep thinking this way you will never do anything in your life. Think about what we can get. We can cure your sigils, we can train you, we can get rid of an infested tree. There is so much to gain here," Marcus said. "Besides, I´m watching your back," he said with a smile.

Anri looked at his hero with newfound respect, it was astonishing how the older astorian faced challenges and predicaments. Anri wished to be more like him, to have the courage to face the dangers of the world with a smile on the face. The young astorian glanced at the hollows and then at the people around him. He had his best friend, Mildred and a Marcus by his side, he was not alone, at least…not yet. The young astorian tightened the grip over his longsword as he felt a small surge of confidence.

"Thank you…" Anri murmured, "I…I will try," he told Marcus with faint faith and confidence.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Andre of Astora was working on the heated blade of an estoc, his blows were precise and regular without any deviation from their target. Sirris of the Sunless Realms waited patiently with her back to the right wall since she couldn´t leave without her secondary weapon. The silver-clad woman observed the old blacksmith´s working with interest and some admiration but refrained from commenting anything.

"I´m sorry but this gonna take a while," the blacksmith informed without taking his eyes off the blade.

"I can wait," Sirris replied calmly.

After some blows Andre turned and grabbed a small piece of black titanite to insert on the weapon. "Y' know, I once used a titanite slab on one of these. It turned out to be quite the thing," the smith said savoring the memories with a glint in his eyes.

"How did you get a slab?" Sirris asked unable to contain her curiosity.

Titanite slabs were once the domain of the gods of Anor Londor. They became rare after the disappearance of the smith deity and even more so after the First Age of Fire. A slab was considered to be one of the greatest treasure by smiths and warriors across the world and sometimes it was even more valuable than a dragon scale.

Andre scratched his beard, " _Me and my big ol' mouth…"_ he thought frustrated, "I got it a long time ago…a warrior came to me after finding it behind a waterfall. He said it was probably stolen and that the thief had hidden it to get the stone later," he explained.

"And what happened to him?" Sirris asked.

Andre grunted as he hit the hot metal with a small hammer, "He failed in his quest," the elder smith told the knightess with regret and refrained from saying anything else.

"What a pity…" Sirris said disappointed.

 **(Undead Settlement)**

"Good thing I gave them the tips," Marcus mumbled shooting arrow after arrow at the incoming hollows.

Anri blocked hastily a swing from a hollow, he stepped back as the mindless undead lifted the axe again for another attack. The young astorian looked at the right and blocked a pickaxe with his sword. Meanwhile Horace fought a duo of hollows a few steps away from his comrade, he swung his halberd in a wide horizontal arc cleaving the mindless men in half. However, before he could celebrate a trio of hollows charged at him with weapons in hand.

"Mildred!" Marcus shouted, "Kill this thing already! The tree is attracting too many hollows!" the knight shouted taking down one of the hollows who was upon Horace.

"Help them!" the huntress shouted back. "I know how to beat it!" she said rolling forward to avoid being smashed.

The infested tree´s branches and roots had evolved into strong legs and arms while the trunk seemed to ready to burst at any moment. The huntress swung down a black double-bladed axe with a long handle at the creature´s rotting spores, popping them like bubbles filled with gas and pus. The corrupted tree gave a loud moan and staggered backwards as if in great pain.

"There are some spores on the top!" Marcus warned while preparing another arrow.

"Focus on the children, you idiot!" the huntress replied angrily.

"I AM focusing on them! I killed 12 ho- 13 hollows already!" Marcus answered picking another arrow.

Meanwhile Anri lost his footing and fell backwards after blocking a sequence of attacks with his shield. The hollow stood in front of him, the mindless man ready to cut the astorian with his scythe.

"Horace!" Anri screamed for help as he rolled to the side to avoid the attack.

Meanwhile Horace did his best to block and parry the attacks of a duo of hollows. He parried an old hammer with his small metal shield and blocked a scythe with the handle of his halberd. The black-armored knight was already giving signs of exhaustion, his breath became more and more irregular and the halberd seemed to become heavier with each attack.

" _We won´t last…"_ the young astorian realized with dread as he blocked another attack.

Suddenly the entire ground shook making everyone lose their balance. The sound was so loud that it felt like a colossal giant had smashed a hammer onto the plaza. Anri did his best to stand up again before the hollows could do the same, he used his sword as a cane and with much effort recovered from the fall. Horace, however, wasn´t so lucky, he couldn´t recover quickly enough and was forced to block a scythe with the handle of his halberd. With his back to the ground the black-armored warrior struggled to keep the mortal blow at bay, his muscles burned with such intensity that he was gritting his teeth to contain a scream.

Marcus knew at that moment that he had to help Horace, it would be the most logical thing to do in that situation. He just needed to fire an arrow and the problem would be solved, but the earthquake triggered dark memories in his mind; terrible, repetitive and fiery memories. He looked back at the battle between the demon slayer and the corrupted tree, the undead was trying to smash some spores on the tree´s left "hand" but the constant movement of the monster made the task difficult.

Meanwhile Anri saw two new hollows approaching, increasing the number of enemies to five. He gulped, there was no way he could beat them all. The inexperience astorian looked for Horace for help but was horrified when he noticed that his friend was in mortal danger. Before he could rush to Horace´s aid a hollow blocked his vision, standing between him and the black knight. Now almost surrounded Anri prepared for his inevitable death, he was ready to be struck down at any second, he had failed.

" _Two dead enemies are better than five wounded enemies."_ Marcus´ words echoed inside Anri´s mind.

The hopeless undead didn´t know why nor how that memory came in such a critical moment but it prompted him to step forward and strike the hollow on the front with his sword. Blood sprayed from the hollow´s neck, covering the one on the left with a black substance. Anri jumped back to avoid two attacks from the front and right, he swung the blade sideways and hit the leg of the hollow on the right, the mindless man fell to the ground but was still pretty much alive. The astorian stabbed the head of the fallen hollow quickly but failed to block a hammer coming from the opposite side, he was thrown away by the impact but still managed to retain consciousness. Anri hugged his chest in pain as the hollows approached slowly for the final blow. The astorian turned his body so his chest was facing the sky and moved his right hand towards the estus flask on his belt.

" _Horace! I need…to save Horace!"_ Anri thought desperate as he lifted the visor of the helm with the back of his hand.

Anri´s flame burned and shined, struggling to overcome the darkness of fear, the abyss of reluctance. The flame would vanquish the darkness, erase it from existence even if for a minute. However, three clouds loomed over the fire, bringing terrible thunder with them. The thunder struck the fire like a hammer onto a wooden door, threatening to break it apart. The fire waned but stood its ground, it would not be extinguished so easily. From the fire came a blue flame which went forward like the spear of Ornstein himself, piercing the cloud and breaking it apart. Thunder boomed across the skies as the rest of the clouds became bigger and bigger, only for the flame to fly past them in a flash of fire. The young astorian ran the fastest he could towards his companion who was still struggling to survive, he stabbed the hollow who was attacking Horace in the back and then pushed the mindless man aside.

"Horace! Are you okay?!" Anri asked lending a hand to the undead warrior.

"Behind you!" Horace shouted.

Anri looked back immediately and saw two hollows running towards them, he raised his shield and blocked the attacks using a lot of effort. The young astorian grunted as the hollows began a barrage of attacks using their pickaxes, his legs faltered and he crouched to avoid falling backwards.

" _Help me, Horace! No, I have to save Horace. I need help! I can´t resist much longer! I need…"_ Anri thought. "Horace!" he shouted between grunts.

The young astorian felt a sudden weight over his left shoulder, as if someone had hit him with a heavy stick or something heavier. Before Anri could understand what happened his right shoulder received the same hit but this time the impact was much more damaging due to the lack of a pauldron. When the attacks ceased the undead reluctantly lowered his shield to see why the hollows stopped their attacks, both were laying on the ground, lifeless and with bloodied skulls. He looked back and saw Horace in a crouching position, his halberd extended forward and over Anri´s shoulder.

"Ugh!" Horace released his halberd, his breath was heavy and irregular.

"Horace!" Anri crouched and offered his estus flask to the breathless undead.

"No…I´m fine." Horace managed to speak.

Another earthquake struck the plaza, making both undead lose their footing and fall on their backs. Anri grunted as he raised his back from the ground while Horace extended his hand to grab his halberd.

"What was that?" Anri asked confused.

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Marcus shouted running towards them the fastest he could.

"What?" the young astorians asked confused as to why their hero was so afraid.

"The ground is going to collapse!" the Lord of Cinder warned as he rushed to them.

Meanwhile Mildred turned her head towards the fleeing knight, "What?!" she exclaimed looking back at the infested tree.

The putrid tree lifted itself using both legs and arms and then slammed itself towards the ground, the impact was so great that caused a small earthquake that spread across the entire plaza. The stone tiles of the plaza cracked with the force of the impact, the damage expanding throughout the area like a plague infecting skin. The huntress put the greataxe inside her soul and ran quickly to the left side of the plaza. The tiles underneath the tree split apart and gave in, the rest following soon after. Meanwhile Marcus looked back as the ground continued to collapse behind him, he pushed forward as the other two astorians dashed towards the right side of the plaza.

" _We won´t make it!"_ Marcus realized as the tiles fell behind him. " _Even still!"_ he grabbed a talisman from his belt.

The knight from Astora was right behind Anri and Horace when the tiles underneath his feet began to collapse. In a last effort to save the young undead the knight made a quick prayer to the gods, focused the energy on the talisman and released a white shockwave of energy around him. The shockwave sent the astorians flying towards the wooden gate of a building, the force of the impact forcing the gate open. Anri landed on his chest while Horace landed on his back, the young undead turned their heads towards the open gate, fortunately the ground of the building remained firm and still with no signs of damage. The once agitated plaza was now silent, the breaths of the undead astorians filling the stagnated air of the building.

"Where is Marcus?" Anri whispered as he struggled to stand up.

"I think…" Horace grunted as he used his halberd as support to raise from the ground. "…I think he fell," he said.

"No…No, we have to check!" Anri said going outside the building.

"Wait! It can be dangerous!" Horace warned but his words fell on deaf ears.

Horace limped towards his best friend, his body completely exhausted from the extended battle. Anri stood still at the entrance, his body inert and his mouth shut tightly. When the black-armored undead reached him Anri´s voice was quiet as if not to disturb the dead.

"The plaza…" Anri whispered in disbelief.

Horace looked over the area in front of the astorian. Almost two-thirds of the ground had collapsed, giving place to a hole so deep one would think it lead to the abyss itself. Anri walked slowly towards the edge of the hole, his senses still numbed by the sight in front of him, and looked down at the innards of the gap.

"So, do you mind giving me a hand?" a familiar voice spoke.

Anri looked down and blinked, what was he doing at the ledge of the hole, gripping onto a broken tile with both hands? The young astorian couldn´t understand, he was standing at the top and at the bottom at the same time, how could this be? Did he fall and was now remembering how he died? Was it a doppelganger? An illusion? No, it was…

"MARCUS!" Anri shouted crouching, he extended his arm down to the experienced knight.

"You don´t have to shout," Marcus complained as he grabbed the hand of the younger undead.

The young astorian grunted as he used all his might to pull up the Lord of Cinder, he used both hands and even leaned his body back but despite all his efforts he couldn´t do it, the weight was too much for him.

"Horace! I need your help!" Anri shouted.

"I´m…" Horace whispered but his body collapsed after just one step.

"Horace!" Anri exclaimed desperate, fear covered his entire face when he saw the body of his friend laying still on the ground.

The young astorian looked down at Marcus, he was trying his utmost best to climb the ledge but his armor was too heavy to do so. Anri´s eyes widened when he noticed that Marcus´s hand was slipping from his grasp, it would be a matter of seconds before he completely loses the grip, leading to the knight´s death. The young astorian looked around for anything he could do or use to save Marcus, but there was nothing or anyone that could aid him in the rescue. Anri felt completely destroyed in the inside, he was about to let his hero die because of his inability to do anything meaningful. Marcus of Astora would perish because Anri of Astora wasn´t strong enough to save him from a common fall.

"Hey Anri," Marcus called calmly. "Stay calm," he said. " _Usually I wouldn´t mind dying but if I die the souls will linger on the bottom of this hole!"_ he thought worried.

"But you´re going to die! And it is my fault!" the younger man said, his throat was dry and his eyes obstructed by tears.

"Well…if you can hold a little longer I might survive this," Marcus replied.

"Horace! Are you okay?" a female voice asked from behind.

Anri looked back and saw Mildred next to Horace, the huntress turned the man to the side and put her head over the undead´s chest, she sighed when she heard a faint breathing coming from the helm.

"Mildred! Please help me!" Anri called, she was almost losing the grip over Marcus´s hand.

"Huh?" Mildred casually walked towards the edge of the giant hole. "Oh, I see you´re still alive, Marcus," she said with disgust.

"Look Mildred, I know what you´re thinking and I know what is waiting for me once this is over but can you at least help Anri?" Marcus pleaded.

Mildred remained still much to the astorians´ fear and terror, even crossing her arms in a clear sign of refusal.

"Please Miss Mildred, he saved us from falling!" Anri begged. "Please!" he insisted.

Mildred crouched, "Five hollows," she said quietly.

"Yeah I got a little distracted, you know, flashbacks," Marcus admitted nodding his head.

"I…I can´t hold much longer!" Anri mumbled.

"Flashbacks? Ah, I remember…" Mildred rubbed her chin with her index finger.

"No!" Anri shouted when she lost the grip over Marcus´s hand.

"Got you!" Mildred said catching the astorian´s hand, she quickly and easily pulled him to safety.

"Wow…so strong…" Anri mumbled astonished.

Marcus gave a deep breath, relieved that the huntress chose to help him. "Thanks Mildred," he said stretching his left arm.

The demon slayer looked at the knight, "You knew this would happen," she said irritated.

"It was a possibility, yes, that´s why I gave them the tips. I usually think about the worst scenario. Well…at least this worked as an endurance test. I´m surprised Horace was the one to pass out," Marcus commented.

Anri crouched by Horace´s side, he lifted the undead´s visor and was relieved to see he was just sleeping. "Thank gods…" he murmured.

Mildred frowned, "What a bunch of…" she restrained herself just in time. "So, are we finished here?" she asked the knight.

Marcus stood up, "No, I didn´t get the souls from the tree and this means…" he carefully walked to the edge of the hole. "Give me a break!" he said summoning a black bow from his soul.

"Stay back," Mildred told Anri as she approached the edge of the hole. "What…no…" she whispered.

At the very bottom of the hole a shade moved in the dark. A scream filled the sky, the sound deafening and acute. A giant form emerged from the colossal gap and hovered over the undead group, flapping its pale wings and looking down at the immortal warriors with hate and anger.

"That´s not a demon!" Mildred said stepping away from the edge of the gap.

"This must be the seed!" Marcus shouted as he aimed his bow at the grotesque monster.

 **Notes:**

 **I know, it took me a long time to write another chapter, school is giving me too much homework every week and there´s little I can do about it. Hey, at least the chapter is quite long.**

 **If you had the choice of curing Anri or Horace who would you choose?**

 **I´m pretty happy with myself with how I introduced the fight with the Curse-Rotted Greatwood. I didn´t want to be just a battle, I wanted to give it a reason while making things interesting.**

 **For those wondering Marcus recognized Mildred´s jumping attack with the halberd because it is the heavy attack of the Black Knight Glaive. Although I have never seen the black knights doing it in game I assume they do it lore wise.**

 **Power Within was heavily nerfed in Dark Souls 3 but for all reasons and purposes I will consider the first version. Why? Because FromSoftware clearly saw that it was overpowered and decided to nerf it. If you want another explanation, let´s say that you can regulate the amount of power of the spell, so the purple phantom was using the full power of Power Within in this story.**

 **Marcus´s tips work on pretty much every Soul´s game (At least from my experience).**

 **There is a Titanite Slab behind the waterfall in Kalameet´s arena.**

 **The cursed tree´s body slams reminded Marcus of his fights against the Bed of Chaos. In both battles you fight against a corrupt tree who destroys the ground during specific parts of the battle.**

 **Yes, the monster is that pale arm that comes out of the infested tree during the second phase of the battle.**


	10. Seeker of light

" _Sometimes I wonder…what is a curse? We have the undead curse, the ghost curse, the basilisk curse, Seath´s curse…Too many curses for my taste, even though my taste is limited to estus, moss, herbs and mushrooms. And now they say that there is an entire repertory of curses that was sealed inside a holy tree, I wonder what kind of curses those idiots sealed to create this abomination."_ Marcus thought while cutting off a large pale tail.

" _This monster reminds me of the gargoyles but with a human face, thrice bigger and a lot skinnier. I guess it´s because it is just a baby. Gods! This means it can either become gigantic or just stronger! Anyway, I know some curses infect or affect a being, kinda like a poison if you think about it. But what kind of curses are able to create a whole new being? Don´t they need to have a host? I mean, the tree was a host and it WAS infected by them but then…what is this beast doing here? I know trees produce seeds, that´s how they spread, but I´m pretty sure that this giant creature didn´t sprout from a regular seed or fruit, the belly of the tree was swollen and it is clear that the monster came from inside of it."_ the knight fired three arrows at the flying creature.

" _And why it has a human face?!"_ Marcus thought as the monster screeched, " _They wouldn´t seal a corpse, would they? Actually, they may have done this. Although it is unlikely they stuck the person inside the tree, it is not that easy. Unless they became a tree creature or something, there were those strange tree men around the village, very weird…Wait, could it be that the holy tree was once a person? Maybe not, I know that tree people exist alongside mushroom people, so it is possible that it was just a holy tree. On the other hand there were those…tree farmers in the Royal Garden of Oolacile. Although I´m not sure if they were plant in the form of a person due to magic or a person that has turned into a tree. Elizabeth didn´t want to answer so I was never able to confirm it."_ Marcus blocked a punch with a wooden greatshield.

" _She´s probably the only one besides me who knows about Artorias…"_ Marcus thought attacking the arm of the beast with a halberd. " _Ciaran is dead, Gough is probably gone too, Sif can´t tell anyone and I had to keep it from Dusk. I guess it is safe to assume the watchers don´t know either, *sighs*."_ Marcus ducked under a swing and then made an upward swing to attack the exposed head of the monster. " _Sorry Artorias, I´m still angry about this, I´m trying to let it go but it is quite hard. As if being called unkindled again and again wasn´t bad enough…Regardless of how I feel I must do this, I must find the watchers and ask them if linking the fire keeps the Abyss at bay. If so, I´m linking the fire again and if not…I will do what I can."_ the knight nodded to himself as he stood over the corpse of the fallen beast.

"We actually did it!" Anri exclaimed from behind the knight.

"I think I will need another sip of estus…" Horace grunted.

"Here." Mildred offered her flask to the young man.

Marcus turned to face the group, "Mildred, do you have any idea of how this beast came to be?" he asked.

The huntress frowned, "I´m not sure…you called it a seed, if my memory serves me right." she answered.

"Yeah, but I´m not sure of how it was formed." the knight answered.

Horace returned the flask to the huntress, "What if someone used something to create that monster?" he suggested.

"A cursed item?" Anri asked.

"Yes, these things exist, don´t they?" Horace asked looking at Mildred.

Mildred rubbed her chin, "Hm…maybe? I think that in the country of…Marcus, what are you doing?" she asked her friend.

The knight from Astora was climbing the torso of the fallen beast, he pulled a falchion from his soul and prepared to cut the feeble hide of the corpse.

"You may want to avert your eyes, this won´t be pretty." the Lord of Cinder warned.

"Are you going to use his organs?" Mildred asked disgusted.

"No, if Horace is right the item could be inside the creature. If that´s the case we can´t simply leave it here, can we?" he asked.

"I suppose not," the huntress turned her head away from the scene, the younger astorians doing the same a second later.

After a quick and dirty cut the undead pulled a circular object from the stomach of the deceased monster. It was a circle made of the stitched hide of two crystal lizards, the heads quite apparent on both sides. In the middle of the circle only a dark void existed, as if there was another dimension floating in the inner area of the circle.

Marcus frowned, he stepped down from the creature and looked back at his friends, "I think Horace was right. You can look now." he said walking towards Mildred.

"What is this?" Anri asked looming over the peculiar object to gaze upon the void, only to be pulled away by Horace.

"Careful, we don´t know what it can do," the astorian warned.

Mildred bit her lips, "A transposing kiln." she said in a bitter tone.

"What is a transposing kiln? A gate?" the Lord of Cinder asked.

"No, it is a forbidden object from Courland. What a stupid name…It was used to transform souls into all kinds of objects. It is forbidden because stupid greedy people would often end up creating monsters and such." the huntress looked at the knight with eyes colder than the fiercest of winters.

"Let me guess, you want me to destroy it." Marcus deduced. " _Why do they need this? Smith, the giant, could do the same without something like this. Of course, he needed a weapon as a host but not a kiln specifically made for this."_ he thought.

"Of course, you aren´t planning to use this, are you?" the cannibal asked.

"Perhaps…" Marcus answered, "Ludleth, a Lord of Cinder, is from Courland, maybe he knows how to handle it." he said.

"Do you REALLY need more weapons?" Mildred asked with narrowed eyes.

"Yes, I do. But maybe I can find other uses for it, too." the knight from Astora answered.

Horace rubbed his chin, "Can it do the reverse?" he asked.

"Why would he want to…Ah, I see it. He needs souls to continue his journey," Anri realized feeling quite ashamed.

Marcus felt worry as he looked at Anri, " _This is going to be a problem, Anri is blaming himself for all the souls we used."_ he thought. "I`m not sure how this works and that´s why I´m asking Ludleth." he explained. "You can trust me Mildred." the knight told the huntress.

Mildred simply grunted.

As the group went back to the bonfire a figure watched them from atop a nearby house. The wind howled in agony but the hooded person did not care for the cold it brought. They watched in silence as the undead disappeared behind the old buildings of the settlement, not to be seen again. The figure turned their back and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

After curing his sigils Anri removed his glove and observed the restored flesh and skin of his hand. "It worked!" he said, his voice more vivid than before.

"I was expecting him to remove the helm, I´m quite curious." Marcus whispered to Mildred.

"It doesn´t matter how Anri looks." the demon slayer replied.

Anri approached the duo with Horace by his side. "I have no words to express my gratitude." the young astorian bowed, "My mind I clearer now, it is as if…if you were suffering from a headache and then suddenly it is gone." he explained.

"I´m glad to hear this." Marcus smiled. "Now, if you excuse me. I have to talk with Ludleth." he said turning his back to the group.

"He´s in quite a hurry." Horace noted.

Mildred rolled her eyes, "This isn´t the first time. I guess he´s not the type to rest, it must be quite tiresome." she explained.

"I hope he doesn´t overextend himself." Anri said worried.

Meanwhile Marcus stood in front of Ludleth´s throne.

"Hm? Dost thou have a question for me?" the small Lord of Cinder asked.

"Yes, you´re from Courland, right? Do you know how to use a transposing kiln or how it works? I found one in the Undead Settlement." the taller Lord of Cinder replied.

"Oh? Thou found a transposing kiln? May I take a look?" Ludleth of Courland asked.

"Of course." Marcus retried said object from his soul and gave it to Ludleth.

"Oh my, it has been a while since I saw one of these…It is quite old but me thinks it can still be used." the small Lord said.

"Can you use it? Can you tell me how it works?" Marcus asked.

"Before I was a Lord of Cinder, I was a student of transposition. It is the process of extracting, and coalescing the essence of a soul. A forbidden art, that once left a foul stain upon Courland's honor. Tis an art that grants powers once thought unattainable." the pygmy explained.

"So you extract this essence of a special soul and then what? Do you need a host of some kind or it just creates a new thing?" Marcus questioned.

"Thou art a curious one, art thou not?" Ludleth couldn´t help but smile. "No, a host is not needed for the process. Thou just need to extract the essence and then coalesce it to form something new. The result depends on the soul used. I heard stories about users who could create scrolls, weapons and rings, to name a few." the pygmy answered.

Marcus rubbed his chin, "Can you do the reverse? Can you transform a weapon back to a soul? Or is the soul forever lost? You said you use the essence, what happens with the leftovers of the soul?" the knight asked.

Ludleth pondered over the questions, "Hm…some masters of transposition once tried to restore the soul used in the art. They failed because part of the soul was lost during the process, the leftovers are scattered when thou extract the essence and there´s little we can do without them." the small Lord of Cinder answered.

"Why do they use just the essence? Why not the whole soul?" Marcus asked.

"Because usually people want a specific result. Let´s suppose thou hath the soul of an ice golem. Depending on the part of the soul used thou could obtain an icy weapon or a magic scroll. I´m not sure what would be the result if the whole soul were used." Ludleth explained.

"Hm, that makes sense. So, in theory, someone could restore the soul of a transposed weapon if a whole soul were used to make it, right?" the taller Lord of Cinder asked.

"I believe so, although I can´t say for sure. Any particular soul in mind?" the small Lord of Cinder asked.

Marcus crossed his arms, " _I chose to transform Sif into a weapon so he could fight the Abyss even in death. I don´t remember if Smith used the whole soul or not and even if he did, restoring Sif´s soul is meaningless. This case isn´t like Anastasia´s…"_ Marcus thought. "No, I have no soul in mind in the moment. Can I leave the kiln with you? There´s no reason for me to carry it around if I can´t use it myself." Marcus said.

"Of course. I´m not going anywhere, if thou need my assistance I will be glad to help. The only thing I ask from thee is to continue your search for the other lords." Ludleth said.

"I know, I know, just give me 10 minutes." Marcus said walking down the steps.

The knight from Astora went straight to Irina of Carim, he sat on the ground and summoned the book he found on the Road of Sacrifices.

"Ahh, Champion of Ash, welcome back. I hope you were not harmed since our last meeting." the blind woman said looking forward.

"Just a few bruises but nothing else. I have good news Irina, I think I found a divine braille tome." Marcus showed the book to Eygon.

"Where did you find it?" the gargoyle knight asked suspicious.

"On the Road of Sacrifices, there was no one around besides me and Mildred." Marcus pointed to the huntress behind him. "I left a message telling that I brought the book to the shrine just in case the owner comes back." he explained.

Eygon mumbled something but refrained from speaking any further.

"Ah, a divine braille tome? Now I can tell tales of new miracles. Tales of the greater miracles can be quite the epics...What fun we will have." Irina said fondly as the knight handed over the massive book. "Oh! A tome from Carim, an edition…containing advanced miracles. This is…thank you, Marcus." the maiden gave a small bow.

"Take your time, you can tell me the stories later." the astorian suggested.

"Ah, we can read together, if you wish…" Irina said meekly.

"Nah, there´s no need to rush it. Read it first, memorize and then tell me later. Reading a new book aloud for the first time can be quite hard." Marcus replied. " _Like that time I tried to use Force while fighting a trio of hollows."_ he thought.

"O-Okay…It shall be done." Irina nodded.

"Good, hear you soon." Marcus waved goodbye and walked away.

"Hear, you…?" Irina whispered confused.

The knight from Astora approached the huntress from Blighttown.

"That was very mean." Mildred scolded.

"Hm? Hear you soon? I will hear her telling stories soon." Marcus said.

Mildred frowned, "You weren´t joking?" she asked confused.

"No." the knight replied and silence fell over the shrine.

After a minute Mildred broke the silence, "You should be more careful." she warned.

"I always am." Marcus glanced over Mildred´s shoulder to see the Fire Keeper. " _Maybe I should ask about the name when I bring back the Watchers."_ he thought. "Could you show me the way to the Watchers of the Abyss?" he asked.

"I already told you the way to the wolf guardians, or is your memory failing you?" she asked, her words harsh and blunt.

"Now, THAT was rude." he said crossing his arms.

The huntress turned her head away from the knight and towards the young astorians behind her. "Sorry…" she whispered. "Don´t you remember the way?" she asked again.

"Well, you only gave me some directions. You told me to follow the path into a clean swamp and then choose where to go. Let´s assume I won´t lose my way throughout the path and that no enemy ambushes me, where do I go after reaching the swamp? More specifically, what if I choose the wrong way? I don´t have a lot of time." Marcus explained.

"Just go to the right after you reach the swamp, there´s a building and a ladder leading to a poisonous swamp. Once you reach it, go straight ahead and you will reach them." the huntress informed.

"Simple as that?" Marcus retorted.

"Yes, I´m sure you will have no problem." Mildred said snapped her fingers.

Marcus sighed, "Look, I know what you´re thinking I´m sure you know what I´m thinking as well." he said tired.

Mildred glanced back at the astorians behind her, they were chatting with Andre of Astora. "Yes." she admitted quietly. "I will consider it, just give me some time to think about it." she said.

"Really?" the knight asked surprised.

"You had told me to always be honest, hadn´t you?" she asked giving a faint smile.

"I guess so. Hm, how do they look? The Watchers?" Marcus asked.

"They wear those pointy metal hats, it is basically their symbol at this point. Oh, and they wield a large sword with a curved dagger, I wonder where did they get their inspiration from." the huntress grinned at the knight in front of her.

"A sword and dagger?" the knight rubbed his chin. "No idea." Marcus replied confused.

Mildred frowned, "Hm? Then…Forgive me, you should be going." Mildred turned her head when she heard footsteps from behind.

"Are you going after Aldrich?" Anri asked.

"No, I´m after the Watchers of the Abyss. I have a bad feeling about them." the Lord of Cinder replied. "Aldrich will probably be my second goal." he added.

"Oh, I see…" Anri mumbled somehow disappointed.

Mildred pulled a small brown sack out of her soul and offered to the knight from Astora. "You might need this." she stated.

Marcus grabbed the sack and took a look inside, "So they´re still around. Hm…three uses if I put it on my claymore." Marcus whispered.

"What is it?" Horace asked curious.

"Just some resin for my weapons." Marcus replied storing the sack inside his soul.

Horace placed his hand over Anri´s shoulder, "You should give it to him." he advised.

"Hm? Oh, yes! I almost forgot!" Anri said pulling a large brown seed from his soul. "We were saving this for an emergency but I think you should have it." he offered the seed to the older astorian who accepted it.

"A seed?" the Lord of Cinder fought the urge to laugh at the irony. "Wait, you got it from the tree above the shrine?" he asked pointing upwards.

"A giant´s seed. It is quite rare to see one nowadays and a good thing to carry if you´re still sane." Mildred looked upwards. "There´s quite a history behind them, but I believe this is not the time. Too bad, it is quite interesting." the huntress sighed. "What you need to know is that if you crush one of these while being attacked by a hostile phantom they will be hunted by other creatures and undead." she told the knight.

Marcus looked at the seed on his hand, a grim covered his face. "So you´re telling me that if a coward invader use hollows as shields I can use this to make them attack him?" he said raising his brow.

"I know it is not much but…" Anri spoke but was interrupted by Marcus.

"Perfect." he said storing the seed inside his soul.

"Uh?" Anri was confused.

"I have the feeling I will need to use this, very soon." the knight added with a tired tone. "If this seed can help me against an invader then it is a great gift. Thanks." he gave thumbs up. " _Too bad it is can only be used once."_ he thought.

"You-you´re welcome." Anri bowed embarrassed.

Horace rolled his eyes, "Don´t forget to check the tree above the shrine from time to time, this is the second seed we got from that giant tree." he informed.

"Okay." Marcus nodded. "Anything else?" he asked.

Mildred stepped forward and gave the Lord of Cinder a bear hug. "Don´t go hollow, Marcus." she said tenderly. "These are not for dragons…" she whispered on his ear before releasing him.

Marcus stood still in front of the group of undead, much to the discomfort of the young astorians.

"Marcus?" Anri called worried.

"Yes?" the knight said looking back at the bonfire.

"No-Nothing." the younger astorian shook his head.

The knight stared at Anri for no more than a second before going back to the bonfire. "Take a rest." he advised before teleporting to another location.

"You should follow your own advice." Mildred gave a deep sigh.

Meanwhile Hawkwood was immersed in profound reflection, the wavering flames of the bonfire reflecting on his crestfallen eyes.

" _I want to join the legion."_

" _The path of the wolf is no simple commitment. It is a duty to be carried for all eternity. Do you have what it takes?"_

" _If might is what is necessary, I have plenty of it."_

" _I´m not speaking of strength, stranger, I´m talking about will. We are the heirs of the honorable Artorias, the Wolf Knight. We preserve his honor and continue his legacy. Might can be found all around the world but a will of steel is not as common as the metal itself."_

" _Then let me prove myself."_

The Fire Keeper "looked" at the bonfire in silence, her thoughts were many but no single word slipped past her lips. The sound of feet crushing ash warned her of the approach of someone and the sound of metal scrapping the ground confirmed the arrival. Mildred sat on the stairs at the side of the tunnel that led to Andre.

"Worried, my dear?" Mildred asked softly but the blind woman gave no answer or even acknowledged her presence. "It is very rude to ignore people when they´re talking to you." she warned.

The Fire Keeper turned her head towards the huntress and a minuscule movement could be seen on her lips. "I´m truly sorry." she bowed. "My duty requires focus, even more in times like this." she explained. "May I ask thee a question?" the blind woman asked.

Mildred grunted, "I have better things to do and more important things to kill." she answered looking at the gigantic sword on her lap. "Marcus will be back soon, I´m certain of it." she said grabbing a small empty flask from her soul.

The demon huntress filled one third of the flask with blue estus, another third with golden estus and then added a mixture of grains. She covered the top with her free hand and then shook the flask several times quickly. After finishing mixing Mildred glanced at the content of the flask and then took a long sip from it. The huntress looked at the blind guardian by her side and frowned.

" _A prisoner, bound to the bonfire and forced to watch over it for I don´t know how long."_ Mildred thought looking at the flask. " _You want to die, don´t you? You´re sick of this place, aren´t you? Killing you has no effect at all. Poor thing, you have no option but to rely on Marcus. I wonder how you can control your flame, and prevent it from becoming a Bed of Chaos…"_ she frowned.

 **(Road of Sacrifices)**

Marcus emerged from the bonfire, he quietly put the Dark Silver Tracer on the right side of his belt and grabbed the sack Mildred gave him. Before tying it to his belt he lifted it on the air and stared at the bottom of the fabric. There were four mends, two on the sides, one in the middle and a long one on the upper half.

" _Her mask, huh? Oh, the irony."_ the Lord of Cinder thought.

The knight tied the sack Mildred gave him on left side of his belt. The knight retrieved Sif from his soul and wielded the greatsword with both hands. He gave a step forward but stopped and looked back at the bonfire.

"Might as well check that, I might not have another chance." the Lord of Cinder mumbled as he returned to the bonfire.

Marcus retrieved a scroll from his soul and opened it with both hands.

"Let´s see, hm…" the knight whispered. "J _ust as I had suspected."_ he thought as he read the content of the paper. " _Oh, didn´t see this one coming."_ he raised a brow and then folded the scroll. " _Good, this will make things ea-No, this will probably make things worse. Yes, it is definitively going to make things worse. In fact, I would rather fight another giant demon with my bare fists again instead of dealing with this."_ he shuddered. "I better deal with the Watchers quickly, Mildred doesn´t has much time." he said to himself as he walked through a broken archway.

The undead knight walked along a descending road of rocks and earth, eventually making a sharp turn to the left and continuing the descend. He turned his head to the right and saw the beginning of a swamp filled with clean water and tall and robust trees. He reached the bottom of the path and spotted the corpses of some hollows spread across the ground. The bodies had no signs of cuts or holes on them and the only things around them were long but reasonably thin tree trunks. Marcus crouched and turned one of the bodies so the belly was facing the sky.

" _Hm…could be the work of a darkwraith, or a mage. Hopefully the later."_ the knight thought as he stood up.

Marcus released the hefty blade and searched his soul for the Crest Shield. He passed it through his arm and put it on his back to give him some protection against ambushes. However, upon taking a step he realized that he was carrying too much weight to properly move in a fight.

" _Come on! Ahrg! Damn it!"_ the Lord of Cinder looked at the greatsword over his shoulder. " _If it is a darkwraith or a mage I will need speed. Sorry Sif…really."_ he sighed as he stored the blade in his soul and retrieved a claymore.

The knight held the claymore in his right hand and the Dark Silver Tracer in his left hand. _"Light version, I guess…"_ he thought stepping into the swamp.

The water wasn´t very deep, only covering the undead´s feet. However, the cold was a nuisance and a distraction, forcing the warrior to double his attention to his surroundings. The knight from Astora walked in an irregular pace, sometimes he would walk with a steady pace but then give two quick steps followed by a very slow step. On other occasions he suddenly stopped to take a breath and resume a moment later and on other cases he would drag his foot a bit before taking another step. Every sequence was different than the last and never in an obvious order.

" _It is taking longer than I had expected. Where are you? Are you still trying to decipher the sequence? Because there´s none. Maybe trying to get ahead of me and get a clear shot? You could have aimed at my legs during my breaks. Unless…"_ the knight stopped to look around. "Look! If you´re trying to stalk me you´re doing a pretty bad job." he said looking back. "So, are you going to attack me or hide in the shadows like a coward?" he turned to face his opponent.

As soon as the undead turned back a heavy bolt crossed the air and hit him on the chest.

 **(Flashback)**

"Andre." Marcus called the bearded blacksmith.

"What is it?" the smith asked.

"How much can you reinforce a mail with titanite?" the knight asked.

"It depends, how many shards do you have?" Andre asked.

The lord-seeker summoned a square black ore from his soul and put it on the smith´s anvil.

 **(End of Flashback)**

The bolt bounced off the mail, doing no real damage but taking away the breath of the knight. The impact was like a punch to the guts but Marcus stood still and firm.

"Ouch, that hurt." the knight said aloud. "Try again." he suggested playfully.

A quick soul dart spawned out of thin air and went straight towards the knight but he turned his back and used his magic-resistant shield to block the attack.

"Usually I wouldn´t say to turn your back to your enemy but I suppose this is an exception." the knight said turning to face the direction of the attack. "Care to show yourself?" he asked putting the dagger on his belt and retrieving the Ivory Catalyst.

In an unexpected move a form came into view out of thin air. It was a dark spirit wearing golden clothes with a small golden cape that covered the left shoulder. A set of large medallions were bind together and wore like a rope across the torso. A pair of undulating pieces of steel protected the thighs and the feet were covered by golden straps. However, the most intriguing part was the headpiece, a massive piece of golden cloth that covered the entire head and towered over the body much like the top of a mushroom. The person carried a light wooden crossbow in the left hand and what looked like to be a pick enveloped by golden straps on the other.

" _Please tell me your head isn´t one of those demonic parasites."_ Marcus thought. "What a surprise, you actually decided to appear." the Lord of Cinder clapped once.

"Where did you get that catalyst?" a young female voice asked.

"So you can get one too? Why would I give it to potential darkwraith?" Marcus asked with disgust.

"I´m not a darkwraith!" the dark spirit said trusting her pick forward.

A barrage of five soul arrows spread horizontally was summoned but the warrior ducked under the magic. Surprisingly enough the sorceress aimed her catalyst down and another four waves came, but only four soul arrows hit the knight. Marcus grunted as he stood up, the arrows weren´t particularly powerful but when combined they were quite strong.

" _This reminds me of those dark sorcerers of Oolacile, except it is a soul version."_ Marcus thought. "I could ask you why you are attacking me but you could be lying." he said passing the catalyst over his sword, the steel blade gained a light blue tone.

The Lord of Cinder quickly put the catalyst on his belt and grabbed the Dark Silver Tracer. He dashed forward but the sorceress fired another barrage of soul arrows at his feet. Marcus jumped over the first wave and then plunged the dagger on the earth, using it as leverage to do a circling motion while extending his claymore outwards. The dark spirit jumped back, out of the reach of the sword and fired a quick soul arrow at the knight but he kicked the earth and spun to move out of the way. The sorceress mumbled something under her breath as the knight remained crouched and gasping for air.

" _It took me everything to do the second spin, this is not good."_ Marcus thought looking at the immobile sorceress. " _Why is she not attacking?"_ he thought confused.

The dark spirit kept her eyes fixed on the breathless knight. She tightened her grip over her pick-catalyst and lifted it towards the sky, a blue sparkle engulfed the object, turning it blue as well.

"Why I have never thought of that?" Marcus asked himself as he recovered.

The knight trusted the claymore forward but the sorceress easily sidestepped the attack and lifted her pick above her head. Marcus pulled back the sword and intercepted the pick with his long dagger.

"Pretty good choice, I must say." the Lord of Cinder commended and then swung his claymore sideways.

The dark spirit leaned to the left, and then fired a barrage of soul arrows at the knight but he blocked it with the blade. Marcus jumped back and then forward with his greatsword aimed down, forcing the sorceress to roll to the side. The dark spirit prepared to fire a quick soul arrow at the knight but he was already upon her. The knight did an upward swing, sending drops of water and earth towards the woman. Instead of covering her face the dark spirit extended her arm and fired a barrage of soul arrows at point blank range. Marcus screamed as the force of impact sent him back and towards the ground. The dark spirit approached the lord-seeker and stood over him, the catalyst aimed at his face.

"You may call me a murderer, but I want you to know this: I will never, NEVER, be a darkwraith." the sorceress told the knight.

Marcus coughed blood. "Do you think Artorias would care if you´re a darkwraith or not?" he asked using his left hand to support himself.

The sorceress´s hand trembled for an instant and lowered her head. Marcus slowly moved his hand towards the dagger by his side but his opponent fired a soul arrow at his hand, forcing him to move it away from the weapon.

"Who are you?" the dark spirit asked.

"Marcus of Astora, a lord-seeker." Marcus replied.

"So you seek the Abyss Watchers?" the golden sorceress asked quietly. "You´re no match for them." she said channeling her magic into her catalyst.

Marcus rolled to the side, grabbing his catalyst during the roll and firing a quick soul arrow towards his opponent´s head. The sorceress shook her head to the sides and fired back at the knight but he blocked the attack with his claymore as he struggled to stand up.

" _Ouch!"_ Marcus gritted his teeth as he held his right hand with the other. "Just because I´m injured doesn´t mean I will give up yet!" he said putting the catalyst on his belt.

The dark spirit looked at the Dark Silver Tracer laying on the ground and then back to the knight. "Grab your dagger." she ordered.

"You´re giving me an advantage?" Marcus asked intrigued.

"That is no ordinary dagger, unlike your sword." the sorceress replied. "It matters little to me, it won´t decide this battle." she added a second later.

Marcus stared at the dark spirit, "I agree." he said crouching to grab the curved dagger.

The knight put the dagger on his belt and passed the claymore to his left hand. He coughed and leaned forward due to the pain in his chest. The dark spirit looked at the injured warrior and nodded in approval.

"So you start by shooting at me out of nowhere and now you show honor?" Marcus asked annoyed.

"I owe you no explanations." the sorceress replied aiming her crossbow at the Lord of Cinder.

Marcus raised his sword above the head and brought it down at the sorceress but she easily avoided the attack by stepping to the side. The knight swung his free arm at her face and then swung his claymore sideways but his opponent blocked with the enchanted pick and fired a bolt at the warrior´s chest. The astorian stumbled back but managed to regain his footing in time to dodge a soul arrow. The Lord of Cinder swung his claymore sideways, rolled back to avoid a soul arrow and then jumped forward and slammed his sword down onto the ground but the sorceress rolled to the side. Marcus spun around with his sword extended forward, forcing his opponent to jump back.

The astorian held the claymore behind his head and then charged forward before swinging the long blade sideways. The dark spirit created an ethereal sword made of blue magic from her pick and swung her weapon down at the exposed back of the knight. Marcus grunted in pain and responded by swinging his sword upwards but the golden sorceress leaned to the side, barely avoiding the deadly blow, and struck the ethereal blade on the knight´s chest. However, the Lord of Cinder endured the pain and managed to bring down the blade on the sorceress´s exposed shoulder.

Blood spread across the clean water of the swamp, polluting the earth below with humanity´s essence. The dark spirit fell to her knees while the knight gasped for air. The sorceress aimed her catalyst at the vulnerable warrior but she couldn´t conjure a spell despite her efforts, the astorian tried to lift his sword but his arm failed him and only his legs were still strong enough to properly do their functions.

" _This woman has the agility of a warrior! How did she manage to avoid almost all my attacks? It is as if she knew what I was going to do moments before I moved my body!"_ Marcus thought.

The sorceress forced her body to stand up. "It is a shame we have to meet like this. You would have been a great addition to the Legion. However, I cannot let you go away." she commended.

"And I can´t let you go either. Just because you´re not a darkwraith doesn´t mean I can let you get way with invading people for personal gain." Marcus replied.

"I don´t strive for an evil goal." the dark spirit told the knight.

"It doesn´t matter what you´re aiming for, what really matters is what you do." the Lord of Cinder replied as he mustered the strength to place the claymore over his shoulder.

"Would you give a chance for the Abyss to spread?" the dark spirit asked reloading her crossbow.

"What´s the point of fighting the Abyss if you end up like it?" Marcus said grabbing the dagger from his belt.

"Would you endanger the ones you love? Your people? Your friends? This world?!" the dark spirit raised her voice with each word.

Marcus leaned forward with his dagger facing back and the sword pointing forward. "People are only really lost when there´s no light in them anymore. Don´t overestimate the Abyss and don´t underestimate the fire within us." the knight answered.

The sorceress gulped, she couldn´t find words to make an argument.

"As much as I would like to let you leave, I really must kill you for your murders. Sorry, Yellow Wolf." Marcus sighed.

The dark spirit lowered her crossbow. "What did you call me?" she asked.

"I figured out moments ago. The way you rejected the title of darkwraith, your reaction when I mentioned Artorias, your hatred for the Abyss and the fact that according to a friend I´m close to the Abyss Watchers." Marcus explained. "Why? How? What? I often make these questions." he added with a smile. "But really? You try to kill everyone that tries to enter your home? I want to help, for Artorias sake." he said disappointed.

"And you´re still going to kill me?" the sorceress raised a brow.

"Or die trying." Marcus nodded.

Despite their injuries the fight was clearly one-sided. Marchs had received too many attacks to the chest and even swinging his dagger caused pain on his hand while The Dark Spirit could still dodge and move rather swiftly. At the end of their fight Marcus was laying on the ground, his face facing the green leaves of the trees and the pale light beyond. The sorceress, nicknamed Yellow Wolf by the knight, approached him in silence. She crouched and went to grab the ivory catalyst on his belt.

"This was a gift." Marcus stated, too injured to move his body.

Yellow Wolf stopped and then retreated her hand. She instead lifted Marcus´s visor and was surprised to see what looked like a hollowed face but with livid eyes.

"Surprised? That´s why I always wear a helm." he said.

"I will do this as painless as possible." Yellow Wolf told the knight as she pulled a dagger from her belt.

"Oh yeah, firing multiple soul arrows at point blank surely is painless." the knight chuckled a moment before his death.

 **(Later)**

Marcus entered the Swamp for a second time, he saw some hollows holding some thin wooden trunks on the distance but decided to ignore them since they were looking the other way.

"Right on the eye…" the Lord of Cinder placed a hand over his visor. " _She´s the swiftest sorceress I have ever fought, and the only one to use a crossbow for that matter. Hm, her pick-catalyst is very useful for close combat and the crossbow a good alternative against magic-resistant foes, clever, very clever. I was expecting her to use a shield but I guess it is like I always say, there´s no need for one if you don´t get hit."_ Marcus smiled and then looked at his sword, " _If only I could use Great Magic Shield…I´m almost able to use it, almost."_ he stopped right on his tracks. _"You idiot! I could have used Magic Barrier!"_ he thought covering his face with both hands.

After a short trip the astorian reached dry earth, he saw a long and tall brick wall not too far away with stairs made of rock leading into an archway. Two warriors wearing black armor stood on the stairs, their giant weapons over their shoulders and metal masks hiding their faces. The one on the left and a few steps down wielded a large curved greatsword with bloodstains on the blade while the one on the right carried a large wooden club. Marcus was about 15 meters away from the entrance and for now the duo decided to remain on their positions.

" _Have thine own respect, go not yonder knocking for nothing, I say!"_ Marcus remembered the words of Alvina, the talking cat.

"Hey!" Marcus shouted and the guardians turned their heads towards him. "I want to talk with the Abyss Watchers!" he explained.

The guardians looked at each other, the one on the left jerked his head towards Marcus and the other nodded in response. The one holding the club walked down the steps.

 **(Flashback)**

Marcus walked inside a destroyed building. It was night and the Moon shined brightly on the sky. The wind did not whisper but cried in sorrow for the fallen souls of the forest. The Darkroot Garden wasn´t always called by this name, once upon a time it had another name: Oolacile. This place was once a proud and small kingdom, home of respect sorcerers who casted light magic, home of Princess Dusk and the retired Gough and the place where Artorias became legend. Of course, this was a long time ago and few survivors were left by the time the astorian visited this place.

The knight heard a purring sound coming from his left and looked up to see the source of the noise. There was a fat silver cat sleeping over a broken window.

"You must be Alvina." Marcus stated turning to face the sleeping cat.

The silver cat continued to purr in her sleep, seemingly unaware of the warrior´s presence.

"I know you´re not sleeping, you weren´t purring when I was just outside." the knight folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Who dares disturb my sleep?" the cat said rubbing her eyes. "Is it not so that thou art new." she said, her voice old and filled with a hint of humor.

"I´m not new and you do know who I am." Marcus replied.

"Is that so?" Alvina asked intrigued, "I don´t quite remember one such as thee, and I do have a good memory." the cat answered.

"Really?! Is that how it is going to be? You´re not even going to acknowledge me?!" Marcus exclaimed. "There´s no one around to hear you!" he told the cat.

Alvina looked to the left and then to the bloodstained sword of the knight.

"No, not anymore, I suppose." Alvina said looking back at the undead astorian with fire in her eyes. "Tell me, stranger, what brings you here?" she asked empathizing the word "stranger".

"You…! Ungrateful…!" the knight punched the air in frustration. "Could you at least recognize me?!" he asked turning his back to the cat.

"Ah…I see." the cat rubbed her head with her pawn. "Cometh thee for the grave of sir Artorias. My advice true, forget this! The legend of Artorias art none but a fabrication. Traversing the dark? 'Tis but a fairy tale. Have thine own respect, go not yonder knocking for nothing, I say!" Alvina said.

The knight turned to face the cat, "I have to defeat the Four Kings but the Abyss takes me every time I reach their lair. There must be a way." he said full of determination.

Alvina scoffed. "What a fool. Thou seeketh to fight the Abyss, yet can´t fight thy own darkness!" she exclaimed.

"I won´t succumb to the Abyss! Even if I have to kill myself to avoid it!" the lord slayer stated.

"Is that so? Thou cameth here, overextending thy lungs as if the First Flame depended on it, claiming to be an acquaintance of mine while we never talked, and letting thy own anger take control. Tell me, invader, how can one such as thee face the Abyss?" the cat asked amused.

Anger boiled inside Marcus´s soul, filling his urge to attack the ungrateful feline with all his might. He punched the air in front of him and sighed. He would not let his urges get the best of him.

"Because, Alvina friend of Sif and Artorias and the one that guided me through the Abyss of Oolacile to save Sif, even though I have the Abyss inside me, it doesn´t mean I will let it control me. The Dark within me won´t allow it." the knight explained calmly.

"Dark? Abyss? Thou see them as different?" the grey cat asked.

"The Dark Soul of humanity is driven by emotion, heck, you could even say it IS emotion. You can choose to empower it with selfish desires like greedy and anger or you can feed it with feelings like love and altruism, the former creates the Abyss and the latter is what should guide us in our daily lives. This is what I believe." Marcus pointed his greatsword towards the cat. "I will protect and save those I can…" the knight placed his left hand over his chest, the hand over his right arm. "…while my memories and their aid help me on my journey, so that I won´t fall to the Abyss." he said.

Alvina looked at the newcomer with interest, she purred and chuckled in amusement.

"What´s so funny?" Marcus asked annoyed.

"Very well, if thou so believe that you can defeat the fallen kings, then head yonder and find Artorias´s sacred grave. There thou shall find what thou seeketh." the cat answered looking at her left.

The astorian followed the cat´s gaze and then looked back at Alvina but the felyne had disappeared.

 **(End of Flashback)**

The Lord of Cinder chugged the golden liquid of his estus flask, the warm substance healing deep wounds and scars few would be able to survive. He looked down at his defeated opponent on the ground and then proceeded forward through the giant archway. The tiles were old and many were missing and the bricks were discolored and uneven. The knight spotted a square hole on the ground at the right with a wooden ladder leading down to a lower level not too far below and so decided to climb down the ladder.

It was a small room with just an old table on the corner with some chairs and empty plates on it. The astorian spotted a lit bonfire on the right and went straight to it for some well-deserved rest. He sat down and refilled his estus flask before proceeding through an archway.

" _The poisonous swamp, just like Mildred told me. Now I just need to go yonder. Gods, I miss her…"_ Marcus thought.

In front of him a poisonousswampextended as far as the eyes could see. The trees were much more abundant and their leaves blocked most of the sunlight, hiding forms and shapes alike. Not only the water was thick and muddy but the trees were also infested with fungus and many horrendous but small insects. After reaching the edge of dry earth the knight spotted an undead message on the ground.

" _Extinguish three flames and open the door to Wolf´s Blood."_

A second message appeared by the side of the first, it read:

" _Spare the ones afflicted by poison."_

Marcus raised a brow, "So there are some that AREN´T afflicted by poison? Hm…" the knight mumbled intrigued. "I hate when people are vague with their tips." he covered his face with his left hand.

The knight stored his weapons in his soul and armed himself with a medium round red shield with the drawing of a black spider etched on it and the Partizan spear. The murky water covered the warrior´s feet in seconds but not to the point of hindering his mobility.

" _Should I use the Poisonbite ring? Maybe not, I need to build up resistance to poison like Mildred did. Which reminds me, my pain tolerance seems to have increased. Maybe it is because I burned for so long."_ Marcus thought.

He began to jog through the swamp, looking around for any signs of flames burning in the distance

 **(Meanwhile)**

"So, have you heard the news?" a young male voice asked.

"Yes, they succeeded once again. No surprise, they never fail." a young woman replied with a smile as she looked upwards.

Tall trees blocked most of sunlight, allowing only a few rays of warm light to bathe the earth and its inhabitants. The ground was replete of life with bushes and grass covering most of the ground. The man threw a piece of wood at the small bonfire in front of him and moved a rock closer to the heart of the fire so the flames won´t spread across the forest. Both humans wore dark brown robes that reached the knees with a hood, although at the time both had their heads exposed.

"We have been quite busy these past decades." the man commented.

"Yes, I know. But this is how it is, it hasn´t changed since the First Age and it probably never will." the woman looked at the fire, "But to see so many committed to fight it with such determination… perhaps this is a sign. Fight fire with fire, I suppose." the woman commented looking at her pick-catalyst.

"I guess so, how is your training with Xavier?" the man asked.

"The old man still teaches me new things every week, although he still refuses to teach me crystal sorceries. He justifies by saying that I don´t need them." the woman replied.

"He sees potential in you." the man looked around to be sure no one else was hearing. "Don´t tell anybody, but most sorcerers agree you will take his mantle in the future." the man told the sorceress.

"Me? You jest!" the sorceress said happily.

"Heysel, you´re the one that improved Farron´s Dart and even created Farron´s Hail. Sorceries which are currently being taught to every sorcerer skilled enough to learn them." the man pointed out.

The sorceress forced a smile on her face, "Thank you, Harry. You´re quite good with the spear too." the sorceress pointed to the simple but well-made spear on the man´s lap.

Harry, however, was looking over the sorceress´s shoulder. The prodigy heard splashes of water coming from her left, prompting her to follow the spearman´s gaze. There was a person approaching the bonfire, walking casually through the murky waters of the poisonous swamp. The newcomer wore black armor with white strips all over the material, making the user look like a skeleton. They wore a mask that resembled a skull with a black hood made of thin threads that reached their back and wielded a black broad longsword.

Heysel stood up in a second and prepared herself for the incoming battle. A humanoid figure walked by her side, the being pointed their spear towards the intruder as they raised a makeshift wooden shield in front of their body. The spearman had a multitude of small blunt horns on its head, the arrangement making it look like a crown; a short beak with a grey beard covering most of the face and greyish violet skin tone with fur covering the arms and legs, which were unusually long. The spearman´s legs were not so different from a goat, suggesting the ability of long and high jumps and the hands were large with sharp long nails. While most of the creature´s body was exposed, a lonely brownish cape covered its back and shoulders, hinting at some level of intelligence.

The spearman grunted something unintelligible, prompting Heysel to frown.

"You have some nerve, darkwraith. To come to Farron for humanity is a foolish choice indeed." the sorceress said as she prepared a spell.

 **Notes:**

 **Finally I can write about Farron and the Abyss Watchers! I was waiting to write this part for months.**

 **The first time that Marcus tried to use the miracle Force was against the three hollows near the first Firelink Shrine**

 **Marcus actually killed the Asylum Demon without his club (he began his journey as a deprived).**

 **The blind fire keeper was going to ask Mildred if she was willing to link the First Flame but Mildred is more worried about killing all demon kind. Also, I think it is pretty obvious Mildred is not a fan of raging flames that consume people.**

 **Marcus asked Andre to use an entire Titanite Slab on his mail.**

 **Heysel managed to defeat Marcus because his fighting style is similar to the Abyss Watcher´s, and she´s very familiar with the moves and attacks due to seeing them so many times.**

 **In the game it is stated that Heysel is the daughter of the leader of the acolytes of Farron and a talented sorceress that created two spells: Great Farron Dart and Faron Hail.**

 **I choose the name "Xavier" for the Crystal Sage because of X-men. I can´t help but remember Wolverine every time I read about Logan in Dark Souls. It also fits quite well because the Crystal Sage of Farron taught other sorcerers.**

 **Yeah, in this story Marcus is the one that created the Legion Etiquette.**


	11. Forgotten

Marcus struggled with all his might as water filled his lungs. The skull-like face of his foe gave no indication of remorse or guilty, only thirst for power and malice. The dark knight´s left hand began to produce a white light, engulfing the hand in a vortex of deceptively evil white. With a final move the skull knight trusted his arm forward.

The knight woke up in Firelink Shrine. He looked at the greatsword on his hands, a blade forged with the soul of Sif, the giant grey wolf and companion of the honorable Artorias.

"These darkwraiths, they´re pretty tough. And to think Artorias fought them in the past…" Marcus mumbled as he stood up one more time.

The warrior looked at the bright blue sky and then the great wall of stone on the distance. He rubbed the back of his head and then stared at the Dark Silver Tracer on his left hand. Somehow the blade still contained a powerful toxin, a poison powerful enough to rend down even a demon. Marcus walked down the steps of the old shrine and reached a lower level of the ancient building. He stopped halfway through and turned his head to the left. Right beneath the bonfire one could see an improvised cell carved in the rock. A small box of stone with iron bars on the front. Inside the cell a maiden was crouched, her head hanging low and her dress covered in ash. The Dark Slayer mumbled something, he sheathed his dagger and ignited his pyromancy flame.

 **(Present Day)**

Marcus spotted a large fire on the distance, so he headed towards its location. As he approached the flame he noticed forms obstructing the warm light in irregular intervals. He grabbed his binoculars with his left hand to get a better look. The knight spotted a person wearing brown robes and a humanoid creature wielding a spear and shield, both were fighting side-by-side against a warrior wearing black armor.

" _Mildred was right! I need to hurry!"_ he thought rushing towards the duel.

The knight stored the shield in his soul, retrieved the claymore, passing it to his right hand and the spear to his left and checked the Dark Silver Tracer on his belt. When he was close enough he stopped midtrack and leaned back with the spear by his side. The darkwraith had his hands full with the swamp dwellers to notice the astorian aiming his spear at him and was caught by surprise when a long spear landed by his feet. Wasting no time Heysel stepped forward and fired a large soul spear directly at the fallen knight´s belly. The magical projectile pierced the rusty and fragile armor and passed through the entirety of the wraith´s body, flying over the polluted water and directly towards Marcus.

The astorian sidestepped the soul spear with ease, having done it multiple times in the past. Meanwhile the darkwraith kneeled on the ground, his hands holding the injury to stop the black blood from leaking out. The spearman approached from the side and pierced his back with the spear, prompting the invader to release his black blade and roar in pain. Heysel came from the front and extended her arm down, the catalyst almost touching the darkwraith´s forehead. The sorceress channeled all her might and fired a wave of small soul arrows, destroying the skull-like mask and obliterating the wraith´s face. The skull knight fell backwards and landed on the poisonous water of the swamp, his head covered by the murky water.

Heysel sighed as the spearman approached her. The beast placed a hand over her shoulder and mumbled something.

"No, I´m fine." Heysel spoke with a sincere smile.

The beast grunted again and pointed his arm forward, instigating the sorceress to follow the direction he was pointing at. A knight wielding a greatsword and dagger was approaching their location.

Marcus reached the small patch of dry earth and shook his legs to remove the excess of water in his boots, his attention fully directed on the task at hand. The swamp dwellers watched him in silence, the spearman with the shield in front of him and the sorceress with her weapon at hand. The knight coughed and then retrieved his spear from the ground.

"I suppose you´re one of the people afflicted by poison." the warrior said nonchalant and then looked at the corpse by his side. "I tried to hit him from afar, guess my aim is not as good as before. Sorry." he apologized.

The spearman garbled something, making the astorian tilt his head to the side.

"What did he say?" Marcus asked the sorceress.

Heysel remained quiet, the man in front of her would instantly recognize her if…

"Don't you know either, Yellow Wolf?" he asked genuinely interested.

Heysel bit her lips. How did he know?

"Your catalyst. Kinda hard to miss someone with a pick/catalyst with golden cloth around it." the astorian pointed at the object.

The sorceress looked at her catalyst, cursed herself for such stupidity and looked back at the knight. "Pippin and Gaston, the guards at the entrance…" she started but was interrupted by the knight.

"I just knocked them out with a blunt hit on the head. They should be awake by now." Marcus explained. "A friend of mine warned me about them, but I was hoping she was mistaken." he pointed his spear at the fallen darkwraith by his side.

The spearman garbled at the sorceress, his tone urgent and severe.

"Yes, warn the others about the darkwraiths. Tell them we have a newcomer seeking to fight the Watchers." Heysel ordered.

The beast man 'spoke' again, this time in a more cautious tone.

"I will be fine. Now, go." the sorceress said pointing to her left.

The spearman nodded and ran away the fasted he could, leaving the humans alone to talk.

"So you DO understand them." Marcus commented intrigued at how she was able to translate such incoherent garbling. " _And I thought the demon language was hard to understand. Speaking of witch, is she wearing an enchanted ring?"_ he thought looking at her hands.

"I presume you want your revenge." Heysel spoke emotionless.

"I think we can agree the darkwraiths are a bigger problem at the moment." he said storing the spear in his soul.

Heysel hesitated but gave a small nod, "And when this is over?" she asked.

"It will depend upon you, will you continue to be a…?" the knight coughed. "…a black phantom?" he inquired.

"You´re sick." the sorceress pointed out.

"It´s the poison. Speaking of which, will I turn into one of those creatures?" the astorian asked.

"Not unless you live here for decades." Heysel answered.

"Good to know." the knight looked around. "Do you happen to know what exactly what are those flames I need to extinguish? I suppose it isn´t a simple bonfire." he pointed his sword at the campfire behind the sorceress, the fire casting a long shadow over the knight.

"Why are you a lord seeker?" Heysel asked tightening her grip over the catalyst.

"Someone has to link the Fire." Marcus sighed, "I wondered why, of all the lords, the Abyss Watchers aren´t sitting on their throne. But now I understand why. It is the Abyss, right?" he asked.

Heysel turned away from the knight and faced the bonfire. "Your interference is unnecessary. The Watchers will return…in due time." her voice faltered at the end.

"You believe in them." Marcus commented.

"The Abyss Watchers have true strength, more than anyone in this world." the sorceress spoke with conviction. "There´s no abyssal creature they can´t defeat, no matter how much time it takes they always emerge victorious!" she said more to herself than to the knight behind her. "That´s…that´s why you don´t need to interfere." she told the astorian.

"Maybe I can help them with the Abyss." Marcus suggested.

"You don´t have to kill them!" Heysel turned suddenly, tears starting to form on her eyes.

" _I cannot do it myself; I lack the strength, and the bravery…"_ Quelana´s word echoed in Marcus´s mind. "If they are as strong as you say, and they still have light in their souls, then maybe I can help them." the astorian answered.

Heysel cleaned the tears from her face, "What…are you planning?" she asked snorting.

" _I may regret this later, but I don´t want to fail again, and my secret will likely be revealed after this anyway."_ the knight thought _._

Marcus summoned Sif from his soul and held the greatsword with both hands.

Heyse´s eyes widened, it was as if she had seen the ghost of Artorias himself standing right in front of her. She took a step back and only stopped due to the heat of the fire behind her.

"This is…" the sorceress took a step forward to take a better look.

"A replica of Artorias´s sword." the astorian nodded. "It is also enchanted with a blessing against the Abyss, just like the one wielded by the wolf knight. Although, to be honest, I don´t think it is nearly as powerful as the original." Marcus inspected the blueish blade. "My plan is to hit them until the blessing erases the Abyss." he said.

Heysel approached the knight, seemingly hypnotized by the blade.

"May I…take a look?" she asked wishful.

"No, and I won´t let you inspect my catalyst either." the knight shook his head as he stored the weapon in his soul, much to the sorceress´s anguish. "If you really want them you will have to kill me again, but this will only add to the pile of sins you have." Marcus sighed.

Heysel gulped, she looked at the catalyst on the knight´s belt and then at Marcus´s face. She lifted her arm and extended her hand forward.

"I see…" Marcus said holding his claymore with the right hand. "It seems someone wants to go hollow today." he calmly said. "YOU HAVE NO GUTS, DO YOU?!" he spun around and blocked a dark thick blade with his sword.

Marcus struggled against the brute strength of the fallen knight, he saw his opponent channeling energy on the left and so backed away just in time to avoid a fatal grab. Heysel fired a quick soul arrow at the darkwraith but the skull knight formed a spectral dark round shield on his left hand and blocked the attack.

"I don´t think your magic will be effective against that shield." Marcus whispered. "Try hitting it with your pick." he suggested. _"Dark Shields are highly resistant to fire, magic and lighting, but vulnerable to physical attacks."_ Marcus thought as he stood by Heyse´s side.

The skull knight charged at Marcus, making the astorian wonder if he held some type of grudge for killing him in the past. Marcus grabbed the Dark Silver Tracer from his belt and blocked the attack with the greatsword and parried the left hand with his dagger, staggering his opponent and giving Heysel a window to shoot an iron bolt at the wraith´s head. The fallen man stumbled to the side but recovered just in time to block a downward swing from Marcus with his shield.

Marcus went for another strike but the darkwraith sidestepped his attack and began a sequence of cuts and slashes as he walked forward in a steady pace. The astorian parried a stab aimed at his chest, ducked under a swing directed at his head and stepped away from a heavy frontal kick. Heysel took the opportunity to fire two quick soul darts at the invader, which chipped the frail armor of the knight of New Londo. Marcus went for a stab with his dagger as he swung his claymore horizontally but the darkwraith simply jumped back and out of reach before dashing forward for an upward swing. The Lord of Cinder blocked the thick blade with his sword and parried the left hand of the fallen knight with his dagger when he attempted a grab from above. Both combatants unlocked their blades and jumped back to get some distance.

" _This is bad, the only thing keeping my alive is my memories. I could barely block his blade. They were already a challenge back them. If this goes on…"_ The knight´s thoughts were interrupted by a blade plunging through his chest.

The darkwraith pulled back his left hand as he invoked the mortal art of lifedrain to take away Marcus´s humanity. Marcus coughed blood and released his claymore, his thoughts fading and his concentration spreading like embers from a bonfire. With a last ditch effort the astorian pulled back his right hand as he channeled his inner flame through his arm and towards his fingers. Both combatants trusted their hands forward, each seeking the other´s face.

Heysel was about to fire a Soul Spear at the darkwraith when a fiery explosion engulfed the skull´s knight´s face, blasting him away and unintentionally pulling off the thick blade from the astorian´s chest. Marcus´s legs failed him and he fell on the damp ground of the swamp.

" _You wanted my flame, didn´t you? Do you like it_?" Marcus smirked before coughing blood.

The astorian saw the invader walking forward, apparently ignoring him and focusing on Heysel. The skull knight blocked a couple of soul darts with his shield as he casually walked past the injured Lord of Cinder, oblivious to the fact that the astorian was holding his talisman.

" _Force or Heal, Force or Heal?"_ Marcus thought as he held the fabric close to his chest.

Blue sparks of magic took flight and exploded upon swirling darkness, the sound akin to a punch hitting a wall. Marcus prayed for a miracle, a miracle to save a life and condemn another. A prayer of unrelenting strength, of unrelenting will and a manifestation of one´s emotion.

The darkwraith was blown away by a wave of white energy. Heysel acted quickly, running to close the gap between them as fast as possible. The sorceress lifted the pick above her head and swung it down at the fallen darkwraith but he quickly formed a Dark Shield to block the attack. Remembering the words from the injured astorian the guardian of Farron grasped her weapon with both hands and proceeded to successively hit the shield with all her might. The skull knight erased his own shield and trusted his thick blade forward but was surprised when the blade missed its target. A high-pitched noise came from the side and a crack followed soon after. The fallen knight looked down at his chest, a blue ethereal blade had penetrated his rusty armor and pierced his belly. Heysel swung her catalyst upwards, breaking the black armor of the invader and cutting through the flesh within. The magical blade erupted from the shoulder of the knight of New Londo, spilling blood on the already dark water of the swamp. The dark knight gargled something and then fell back, the water consuming his body in an instant.

A cough caught Heysel´s attention, prompting her to look over her shoulder. She walked back to Marcus and kneeled by his side, only through experienced eyes it was possible to see the almost insignificant movement of his chest. The sorceress lifted the man´s visor and was met with livid blue eyes staring back at her.

"Not…the eye." the knight whispered.

The guardian of Farron grabbed the undead´s Estus Flask and moved it towards the astorian´s lips but stopped midway. The knight looked at the sorceress but was too weak to even mutter a word.

" _You…don´t believe me, do you?"_ Marcus thought.

Marcus felt his eyes getting heavier as the sky darkened over his body. He couldn´t feel the pain, warmth or light and each second felt like an eternity. His flame was fading and he was too weak to rekindle it. But of course, when the flames can´t be renewed by the lords themselves, the unkindled are called for the duty. And although many ashes were lost to the winds of time, those who still persist go to the boundaries of the world to guarantee the survival of hope and life.

The knight opened his eyes, he could feel his heart beating again and hear his thoughts without trouble. His head slowly moved to the side and his eyes met the back of a person walking away from him. Heysel was leaving him and as far as he could tell she was the one who healed him. The astorian used his arms to lift his back and after a moment of hesitation he sat on the ground.

"Thanks!" the Lord of Cinder exclaimed with a smile on his face.

Heysel stopped, "There are three altars spread across Farron. Find them and extinguish their flames…" she hesitated, "…only then the gate to the Watchers will open." she instructed and then resumed walking.

 **(Firelink Shrine)**

Anri examined his straight sword. It was a relic of Old Astora, the royal land now lost to time. The hilt was covered by blue straps, the golden cross-guard was slightly bent upwards at the end and the blade itself had a faint greyish blue tint. The sword wasn´t sharp, in fact it was quite dull, and it was neither the longest or lightest. A foot soldier would easily disregard such a blade but Anri never considered leaving it behind.

"Anri, are you okay?" Horace asked gently.

The blond astorian looked at the roof of the shrine. Both astorians were sat on the first set of stairs of the ash-filled temple while Mildred took a nap not too far away.

"I´m afraid, Horace. More than ever before." the blonde astorian said with a heavy tone.

"Why do you say that?" Horace asked.

"I had terrible luck in the past: my parents, my life, my friends, Aldrich…but now things are apparently changing. I´m blessed to have a friend such as you, to find lady Mildred safe and well even after all this time…to finally meet Marcus of Astora…It feels like…too good to be true. My luck is abnormally high at the moment." the younger astorian looked at his left hand. "I fear this is just a dream, an illusion of sorts, and I´m afraid of waking up." his voice wavered.

Horace put a hand over his friend's shoulder. "This isn´t a dream, I can assure you. Also, luck doesn´t exist." he told Anri.

"How can you say that there´s no luck? Horace, we met Marcus just in time to cure us, to cure you. We were in the right place and time to meet lady Mildred. We were the only ones…" Anri looked down. "How can tell me we´re not lucky?" he asked the black knight.

"Marcus is a lordseeker just like us, we were going to meet sooner or later. Mildred lives on that forest and we are here today just because we fought our way through the cathedral and our friends gave us a chance to escape. None of this was mere chance. What you call luck is just the consequence of our actions and those who helped us." Horace answered convicted of his opinion.

"The result of our actions…" Anri looked at the sleeping Mildred.

"This is our only chance." Horace whispered.

"But lady Mildred…" the blonde hesitated.

"…will never let us fight Aldrich. Come on, Anri. You know she´s too overprotective." the black knight argued.

The younger astorian looked at his blue shield, "They just want to protect us…Are we really ready to face Aldrich by ourselves? We can barely fight hollows." he asked his companion.

"We will make it happen. I won´t let them hurt you again." Horace said determined.

"Maybe we should let Marcus do it…" Anri spoke quietly.

"Perhaps. But we made a promise, remember?" the black knight asked.

Anri closed his eyes as he hung down his head. "…We…would come back…for our friends…and if it was too late…" the blonde gazed upon the bonfire.

Painful expressions appeared amidst the flames of the shrine, faces of fear, terror and anguish. All of them screamed for help and mercy, calling the astorians for their aid, but no pleas were heard and one by one the faces faded, leaving only a stronger but darker flame behind. A dark blue flame replaced the bright orange and what was once a symbol of hope became a menacing sight.

Anri blinked, the bonfire had regained its original tone and no face could be found in the fiery waves that engulfed the sword. He grabbed a ring from his pouch. The metal was pure black with a gem on top of it, which was a mixture of black and dark yellow with a white slit on the middle. The astorian inspected the ring in silence, it was a magical ring created from the soul of a terrible monster. Long ago, when Astora still existed, a monster ravaged the kingdom. This creature almost succeeded in destroying the land, but was defeated by the sword of a noble astorian knight and its soul imprisoned in a mystical ring, never to be released again. Ironically, the ring itself remained while the kingdom was left to ruins due to the Undead Curse.

" _I must be strong, I want to be like them…"_ the blonde astorian clutched the ring. "Let´s go." Anri said with renewed vigor.

Both astorians stood by the side of the bonfire, Horace teleported himself out of the shrine but Anri glanced back at the sleeping woman. Mildred was resting on top of a pile of ash which had accumulated on some of the steps of the shrine. She was sleeping comfortably using a pile of cloth as a makeshift pillow, she gave a loud snore and then mumbled something in her sleep.

"I´m sorry…" Anri whispered feeling guilty of his choice.

The blonde astorian extended his hand over the bonfire and disappeared in a yellow mist.

 **(Farron)**

Marcus stood in front of some type of altar. It was a stone table with what looked like to be a furnace built alongside the wall. A steady orange blame burned within the furnace, shielded from the filthy of the swamp and the poison that plagued it. Its guardians were spread across the ground and their spears and shields not far away from their corpses. Their wounds were lethal but it was rare to find more than one in each body.

The astorian needed souls to get stronger and link the First Flame but that didn´t mean he liked killing good people, especially those that still retained their sanity. The inhabitants of Farron were a fierce force indeed, their swings were wide and sometimes clumsy, but their determination and ferocity were not to be underestimated. They were fast and could easily catch a veteran off guard. Marcus wondered if their ferocity came from the poison or if this was something they retained even to this day.

The Lord of Cinder extended his hand to extinguish the flame of the altar, but stopped when he saw a peculiar thing above the flame. There was an image carved on the stone around and above the flame. It depicted the Bed of Chaos, the mother of all demons, extending its roots around itself.

"Tsk, what is the meaning of this?" a female voice asked.

Marcus looked at his left, Mildred was standing by his side looking at the depiction of the Witch of Izalith. Except, she wasn´t really there. The knight could see through her body and the color of her face and cloths were greyish in tone, gaining and losing color each moment. It was nothing but a shade, an imperfect union of worlds. Time was convoluted in Lordran, the distortion of time allowing people from past and future to meet each other for certain periods of time. A perfect union meant that two people could interact with each other while an imperfect occurrence only allowed to see the shadow or silhouette of the person. The nature of a partial bond was diverse, sometimes both sides could see each other while in other cases only one side was aware of the other's presence. However, a nearby bonfire always allowed one side to see the other in their normal shape with colors and defined traits.

The knight guessed that he was seeing nothing but the past of Mildred, and so didn´t even bother saying anything. He could ask her later after all.

Mildred stared at the picture with contempt, old memories resurfaced from the darkness of her mind as she relived a very personal moment.

 **(Flashback)**

"Mom." a kid called.

"Yes, my dear?" a female voice asked bringing a small candle closer to her face.

Mildred smiled tenderly to her son, they were in a small room made of stone with candles spread on each corner of the room.

"What is the Sun?" the boy asked.

"The Sun? Why do you ask this?" Mildred asked.

The kid shifted underneath his blanket, "I heard from one of the priests." he answered timidly.

"Oh...well...The Sun is a very, very, very big flame that burns in the sky. It gives light and warmth to everyone, just like Izalith's flame." she explained.

"Hm…" the boy mumbled, "But won´t the Sun burn the sky? Our fireplace burns wood." the kid asked.

"It doesn´t work like that, dear. The Sun and Izalith's fire are good flames. Izalith and her daughters are nice people, they wouldn´t even think about burning the sky or anything like that." the mother waved her free hand, dismissing the idea. "Now, go to sleep. We have many things to do tomorrow." she said caressing her son's cheek.

"Mom." the kid called.

"Yes?" Mildred asked.

"I love you." the boy said.

"I love you too." the woman kissed the boy's forehead.

 **(End of Flashback)**

Marcus extinguished the flame of the altar with his hand. He looked upwards and saw the last embers floating in the sky for a brief moment until they dispersed into nothing.

"Marcus..." Mildred's shade whispered, catching the astorian off guard.

The knight looked at the waning form of the demon huntress, she was looking at the altar, still clueless to his presence.

"Thank you…" she said as her form disappeared.

The knight looked at the image of the Bed of Chaos, " _We will save you Mildred, we won´t let your hunger overcome you."_ he thought.

The astorian took a sip of his estus flask but then noticed something was out of place. He lifted the flask up to his face.

"Enough for…4 sips? But I only drank one a minute ago, unless…Heysel, she healed me with my own estus flask. Hm…If I use two per flame I should be able to do it. It is just a matter of time." the knight murmured putting the flask away.

The knight from Astora resumed his search for the remaining flames. As he progressed through the swamp he couldn´t help but sense a feeling of familiarity. The landscape was foreign to him, the inhabitants different from the ones he faced in the past and no familiar face to be seen, so why something in his soul was telling him that he had already been there in the past? The Lord of Cinder tried to remember every forest he went through in the past, but none where similar to this swamp. He continued to ponder about the place when he noticed it was getting harder to move around, the water was significantly deeper in that particular part of the swamp, enough to reach the knight's knees.

" _Not good, it would be troublesome if one of those berserkers charged at me"_ the knight thought grabbing the Partizan spear and Crest Shield from his soul.

The warrior put the blue shield on his back and wielded the spear on his right hand and the Spider Shield on his left. He couldn´t sprint on such terrain nor perform a good roll so he chose to fully protect himself from incoming attacks. The astorian proceeded as quickly as possible while paying attention to his surroundings for any ambush.

Marcus's fears would be proven to be correct, a pair of orange eyes watched him from behind a rotten tree, keeping quiet as the clueless human jogged through the swamp. More eyes appeared around the area, drawing closer and closer with ill intent. The knight held the shield closer to his body and whispered a few words. The eyes were almost upon him, two pairs leaped forward and…

"FORCE!" Marcus shouted with all the power of his lungs.

The menacing eyes were blasted away together with the poisonous water of the swamp. Marcus kept holding his talisman with the left hand, he was wearing the shield on his arm so that he could cast miracles and block at the same time. The knight spun around swinging the spear around him in a half circle. The sharpened tip of the spear slashed a pair of the giant orange eyes before piercing through another one.

"Basilisks." Marcus said trusting his spear at the head of one of the creatures.

Basilisks were frog-like creatures, only slightly taller than dogs. The creature had black hide and a red membrane under its jaw that could inflate many times its size. Physically a basilisk was a frail monster, while their claws could cause some harm they were easily stopped by a cheap chain mail and their hide could be easily penetrated by a standard iron sword. Their danger, however, lied in their breath. The monster could spew an accursed mist capable of petrifying a person in a matter of seconds, something they often did against unprepared warriors and travelers. The strangest aspect of the creature, however, was a pair of globes above their head. These globles were twice as big as a cannon ball and resembled a pair of dark orange eyes with a black pupil, and although they were not actually the real eyes of the beast, which were small ones just above the nose, they contained a strange power associated with Nito, the first of the dead.

Marcus saw one of the creatures pull back its head and inflate its lower membrane to spew a petrifying mist at him so he threw the spear at it, killing the monster before it could do anything.

" _Do you REALLY need more weapons?"_ the knight remembered Mildred's question.

The knight pulled another spear from his soul and pierced through the mouth one of the basilisks. He released the weapon, pulled another spear and trusted it upwards to stab a third monster that had jumped towards him. The difference between pulling a new spear and removing one from a corpse was just a second, but staying in the creature's mist for three seconds was enough to turn a person into a statue, and in a terrain where you can hardly jog this meant certain death.

The Lord of Cinder bashed the last creature with his shield and then trusted down his spear at the exposed head of the basilisk. The beast swayed to the sides for a moment before collapsing to the ground. The knight sighed in relief as he allowed his adrenaline to subside. He recovered the spear from the corpse and then stabbed both orange globes with it. Marcus knew that servants of Nito used them to havoc chaos across worlds and lure undead into their own worlds to be killed. It was something Patches had told him and that he later confirmed by himself. Determined to not let the globes be used for nefarious intentions, he went back to every corpse and pierced both globes of each creature before retrieving the rest of the spears. It was a small service to other undead but one he was glad to do.

The undead found the second altar not too long after and was forced to fight more of the inhabitants of the swamp. After killing the guardians of the altar he noticed that the altar had another image above it, this time showing a giant skeleton with smaller ones beneath it.

"Nito?" the knight crossed his arms. "Wait, we have one for Izalith and one for Nito. Could it be that the last one is Gwyn?" he asked himself. " _Extinguish three flames, it is almost like I´m collecting their flames to face the Abyss Watchers."_ he chuckled. "I fought some creatures to collect Izalith's flame and basilisks for Nito's. What´s next? An elite group of warriors for Gwyn's?" the astorian said extinguishing the flame.

The Lord of Cinder took a sip of his estus flask and walked away from the "island" located amidst the ocean of poison. He jogged as quickly as possible but always paying attention to the trees, after all, some snakes were able to easily mimic branches of trees. Not too long after finding the second flame the knight spotted a small orange light at the distance. It was tiny and hidden amongst the rocks of a mound of earth, but visible to the trained eyes of the god seeker.

 **(Flashback)**

"I will remember thee, but I will keep thy story to myself." an old female voice spoke.

Sunlight shined upon a sanctuary hidden in a forest. The stone monuments, pillars honoring past leaders and warriors, surrounded the bonfire in the middle of circular area. Marcus stood in front of a particularly large white mushroom with a red top, one that was taller than him and twice as large. This mushroom was called Elizabeth of Oolacile, mistress of golden sorceries and a godmother to Dusk of Oolacile.

"What? Why would you hide my feats?!" Marcus asked indignant.

"Thou cometh from a time far ahead of our own, to celebrate a hero that is not yet born is something that shouldn´t be done, otherwise the fabric of time and reality will be damaged." Elizabeth explained, her voice calm and carrying years of wisdom.

"THAT IS NONSENSE!" Marcus shouted. "People use soapstones all the time! I know people from different times and lands! This happens EVERY, SINGLE, DAY!" he explained.

"So the fabric of time is already in tatters." the mushroom said hopeless. "I understand the origin of thy anger, but imagine the consequences of your time travel changing such an important event." Elizabeth said.

The god slayer scratched his own helm in frustration as he tried to contain the wrath within him. "I save your life, your forest, Dusk, slay one of the worst beings that has ever existed and you deny me meritocracy! YOU asked me to save Dusk, if ripping the fabric of time was so important to you then WHY ask me to do it on the first place?!" Marchs pointed at the mushroom.

"I…I had no other option." the mushroom turned to the sides, the equivalent of shaking the head for a mushroom. "Dusk is such a sweet girl, I…I couldn´t fathom the idea of losing her to that beast." Elizabeth dropped her head.

Marcus growled as he bent over himself. "I won´t…accept this!" he said turning away from the mushroom.

The knight held his chest with the left hand and the head with the other, he stumbled towards the bonfire like a drunk man.

"What is happening?" Elizabeth asked worried.

"Shut up!" Marcus shouted as he fell on his knees and used his hands to support himself. "I´m busy right now!" he said with a snarl.

Marcus sweated profusely, he had to contain himself and his abyssal emotions or he would doom the entire world. There was a battle inside of him, a fight with dark and abyssal feelings. Marcus's abyss was never really that powerful nor constant, but the denial of meritocracy, one of his strongest principles, gave the abyss a never seen strength at that point.

" _I have to do…something! Anything!"_ the knight thought desperate. " _I´M GOING TO KILL YOU!"_ he thought as abyssal emotions gained ground in his soul.

The god slayer gasped, drops of a black viscous substance were leaking from his helm and fingers. Time was running out and it wouldn´t be long until the Abyss began spreading once more. He couldn´t allow such a disaster to occur again, he wouldn´t condemn the entire world just because of this. There had to be a way to restrain himself, but what? What could possibly save him from feelings caused by injustice?

 **(End of the Flashback)**

Marcus crossed his arms, he was inside a very insignificant and unremarkable cave. The interior had a round space, it was a few meters wide and three meters high. A few round pots were placed on both sides but they had long lost their original color and content. Fortunately for the knight, the ground was dry and so the undead took the opportunity to eat some purple moss he had found in the swamp minutes ago. There were a bunch of candles burning on the ground at the far corner of the cave, giving some much needed light to the otherwise dark hideout.

The Lord of Cinder took a deep breath, he had to be careful or the world would be doomed. There, right in front of him, was a face he wasn´t expecting to face. Elizabeth of Oolacile, godmother of princess Dusk, was having a terrible coughing to the point of bending over due to the pain. She hadn´t notice him yet and up to that point the knight had made no attempt of announcing his presence.

"Well, look at this one. From what far away age hasth thou cometh? I believe it has been over 100 Ages of Fire, at least that´s what Andre of Astora thinks." Marcus rubbed his chin. "You don´t smell so good, but it isn´t tolerable. There´s mushroom for improvement, though." he said nonchalant.

Elizabeth's once white skin was now covered with black and brown marks and her once crimson top had lost its vibrant color. The mushroom was already considered old when the undead first met her, but it was clear that death was very near at that point.

"This…voice…" the mushroom coughed, "Thou art…"

"Yes?" the warrior leaned forward, "Who am I? What did I do?" he asked.

Elizabeth coughed even harder than before, "...the one who, the pain!" the mushroom squinted her eyes.

"Come on, it isn´t so hard, is it? Who am I? How do you know me? As far as I´m concerned chronologically speaking I have never met you before." the Lord of Cinder teased.

"Thou…" Elizabeth gave a profound breath, "…saved Oolacile." she managed to say before coughing.

Marcus mumbled something, "Oh, but you must be mistaken. Everyone and every vocal legend tells the story of the great knight Artorias of Anor Londor, slayer of darkwraiths, and the one who killed Manus, father of the Abyss. Unless you´re implying that I´m Artorias of Anor Londo, savior of Oolacile, is that it?" he asked.

"No, thy name is…" the old mushroom squirmed in pain, "Thy name is…" she closed her white eyes as she tried to remember.

The Lord of Cinder braced himself for the answer. Would she say his name and honor her promise or prove his abyssal claims from long ago? The knight held his breath, he needed to know the truth.

"…" the mushroom bent forward, but this time there was no coughing.

"So…?" Marcus said.

"I…" the mushroom whispered, her voice barely audible.

"Yes?" the knight said.

"…I forgot…" Elizabeth said ashamed.

Marcus sighed, "Well…I was already expecting this." the knight said disappointed, "I guess those mushrooms are the only real reward I will ever get…uh?" the knight felt an insignificant amount of souls entering his body. "She´s dead…" he whispered looking at the corpse in front of him.

The knight bit his own tongue and clenched his fists, "And now the last citizen of Oolacile is gone. Why you, of all people, had to be the one? You didn´t even remember my name anymore, it was the only thing that I asked you before leaving. And don´t say 'I still remember your deeds', this doesn´t count. What if people had started calling Nito 'The Death God' and then 'the first person that died' and on and on until calling him 'the skeleton'? Would people even recognize he´s a god? Would they remember what he was like and his deeds? What about Seath? Father of Sorcery, the Pale Dragon, pale beast? Would they know he´s actually a white scaleless dragon? The answer is no.

A name may look like just a word, but it is so much more. It is the culmination of our being, it can summarize so many aspects and traits and yet distinguish people from one another. My name is the only thing I remember from my former life…and although I can´t determine my entire former life using it, I can at least say for sure that Astora was my homeland, which is already a good thing." the man sighed. "And don´t say that you forgot because it has been over 100 ages, Mildred remembered my name and she´s undead!" the knight turned his back to the mushroom and left the cave.

 **(Later)**

The Lord of Cinder summoned his Crest Shield and Partizan. He had reached the final altar, which was located on a dry mound of earth, but this time only Heysel was standing in front of the flame.

"You´re the last obstacle? Quite the challenge." Marcus admitted.

"I would be, but I have already tested you." the sorceress shook her head.

"But you defeated me, and I lost to the darkwraith." Marcus admitted.

"I defeated you not because of your lack of skill, but because of your techniques. Tell me, where did you learn to fight like that?" she asked.

Marcus felt sweat running free across his face, "I watched the movements of wolves, and I was inspired by the feats of Artorias, although the source was terribly damaged so I couldn´t learn everything I wanted." he revealed. " _Artorias wasn´t using his normal fighting style and was injured, after all."_ he thought.

"Hm…so you had learned from reading a book and watching the movements of wolves? I suppose a person could manage to reach some degree of success…" Heysel speculated. "…but your moves are slightly different and lack precision and speed, unlike the Watchers." she told the Lord of Cinder.

" _Hm? They are currently physically stronger than me? This is terrible, for me, but good thing to know."_ Marcus thought. "Thanks for telling me." slightly annoyed at the comparison.

"Don´t misjudge my words. You may not be as swift and strong as an Abyss Watcher, but I see potential in you. You may extinguish the flame." Heysel stepped aside and gestured towards the flame of the altar.

" _It feels weird to be granted access to something without a fight…_ " the astorian thought walking towards the altar. He stood in front of the stone altar and looked upwards to see the stone tablet over the fire. "Huh? The Four Kings?" he whispered.

The Lord of Cinder was expecting the image of Gwyn, Lord of Sunlight, but instead was met with the figures of four humans with crowns over their heads and flames spreading underneath their feet.

"Four Kings? Are you familiar with the legend of the Chosen Undead?" the acolyte asked genuinely surprised.

" _What?! They know about me? Even though it has been over 100 ages?!"_ Marcus thought looking back at Heysel, fortunately the closed helm hid his surprised expression. "I…guess so." he shifted the weight of his body. "Although I´m not entirely sure how the story really begins nor how many things transpired." he admitted. " _Even I don´t remember everything. I can still tell the entire layout of the places I went through, but HOW did Siegmeyer enter the cathedral through the window?!"_ he thought.

"But didn´t you see the images on the rest of the altars?" Heysel asked.

"I did, but I thought they represented the three main gods: Nito, Izalith and Gwyn. If these tablets tell the legend of the Chosen Undead, shouldn´t there be one for Seath the Scaleless?" the knight asked rubbing the top of his helm.

The sorceress looked away, "There used to be one…but time destroyed it. I´m planning to rebuild it, but not at the moment. Even still, I thought we were some of the few who knew about the legend of the first human lord of cinder." she looked back at the astorian. "Most people have forgotten at this point, or only know about the death of one or two of the holders of the sacred flames. The Legion of Farron recognizes the deeds of the Chosen Undead, and we try our best to preserve their memory, although…" Heysel hesitated.

"You don´t know their name." Marcus completed with a sigh and then a cough.

"It pains me to say this, but yes. We searched far and wide for information, researched entire books, went after every possible person that could have held the information, but nothing. I suspect that no one was recording them at the time, after all, they were the second to link the fire. I doubt there was any type of tradition. People often speculate on who was the Chosen Undead. Some say they were a woman, others say they were a man, some say knight; sorcerer; pyromancer; cleric…no one has a clue." the acolyte´s shoulder fell.

" _I`m a man, but the rest is mostly correct. I´m a knight, sorcerer, pyromancer that can use miracles. I´m far from being a cleric, though."_ Marcus thought. "I wish I could tell you, but…" the knight looked back at the altar. " _…but you would spread it like fire. DAAMN IT! WHY IT HAS TO BE LIKE THIS?!"_ he thought frustrated but his posture remained stoic.

"I see, you don´t know as well. Forgive me, I should have known better." Heysel apologized.

"No problem." the Lord of Cinder extinguished the last flame of the swamp. " _You have no idea how happy I am right now! But I wish I could tell you the entire truth. Focus, focus, be satisfied you idiot!"_ he thought as he repressed his abyssal emotions.

A creature of Farron approached the sorceress with urgency, he leaned forward and seemed to whisper on the acolyte's ear.

"What? Together? But this is unusual, unless…" Heysel looked back at the knight.

"What´s the problem?" Marcus asked worried.

"Darkwraiths, the Ghru had spotted a sizable group on one of the corners of the swamp. They´re currently going to Farron's mausoleum." she said looking at her left.

"Then we must go." Marcus stated.

"No, you go to the Abyss Watchers and…help them." the sorceress shook her head. "The acolytes will handle the darkwraiths and prevent them from interfering." Heysel ordered.

"But what about you?" the knight asked.

"We are strong, even more so when united. They´re our old enemy and we will take care of them." the acolyte stated.

Marcus saw the fire in Heysel´s eyes, there was such a powerful determination contained within, a will akin to obsession. He had no doubt that the sorceress would sacrifice her own life to hunt down the last of the darkwraiths.

"Very well, it's your choice." Marcus nodded.

"There´s a bonfire inside that tower, but don´t take too long." the sorceress pointed at her left.

"I rarely stay on a bonfire." Marcus told the acolyte.

 **Notes:**

 **I´m sorry for taking so long, but I'm currently doing an extensive work in my university and that is my priority at the moment. Fortunately that work is almost complete, and I will have more free time after that.**

 **Gaston and Pippin's name are references to Berserk, I thought it was fitting considering that Farron's Legion and the Band of the Hawk's main trait is camaraderie.**

 **In this story Marcus didn´t find the Ring of the Evil Eye in the Depths, but it was later found by other adventurers and was passed/lost and found through the ages until Anri found it during their adventures. In the game it is stated that Anri misses their kingdom, and it is not far-fetched to believe that they were inspired by legends of astorian knights.**

 **I guess Marcus FORCES his way through his obstacles, huh? XD**

 **It always bothered me that Elizabeth would try to hide the Chosen Undead's victory over Manus, even though we have soapstones that allow such events to occur. I´m sure that some players were pissed at her for doing it. Just to be clear, his meeting with Elizabeth occurs before his encounter with Ciaran, but I suppose you can tell by his reaction.**

 **Marcus believes that remembering one's name and their deeds are equally important. In fact, during the events of Dark Souls 2 it is clear that the characters have forgotten the names of the gods. Straid of Olaphis believes that Izalith is the mother of pyromancy and in Dark Souls 3 people believe that Izalith and her daughters taught humans pyromancy, while the truth is that in Dark Souls 1 it is stated that Quelana is the one who created pyromancy. The Milfanito and Fenito have forgotten about Nito's name and the Fenito refers to Gwyn as "the Former King of Light". In Dark Souls 2 many sorcerers and the crow people only refer to Seath as the "Pale Being" or "Pale Creature", and Ornifex states that they don´t even know what exactly he was.**

 **If you´re wondering why Elizabeth hadn't told the Abyss Watchers that Marcus is the Chosen Undead, it is because we never meet her during the current timeline of Dark Souls 1, so she had no idea that Marcus linked the First Flame, in fact, she has no idea from which age he came from.**

 **Next chapter is Marcus vs the Abyss Watchers, one that I´m eager to write.**


	12. Soul Echoes

**(Farron Mausoleum)**

Marcus stood in front of the giant iron door of Farron's mausoleum. He looked back at Heysel and the Ghru, the swam citizens of Farron. The acolytes, with the exception of Heysel, were not well equipped to deal with the darkwraiths. Their crude spears were in desperate need of repair, their makeshift wooden shields wouldn't last long against the thick blades of the corrupted knights and they were only wearing simple robes and tattered clothes. Sounds of metal striking metal were still coming from inside the mausoleum, indicating that a battle was still raging on and that there was still hope of saving the Abyss Watchers, but Marcus turned his back to the mausoleum and faced the defenders of the swamp.

"What are you waiting for? Go aid the Watchers, we will defeat them." Heysel ordered.

Marcus summoned a small sack from his soul and offered it to the sorceress. "Gold Pine Resin, enough for three weapons." the knight explained.

Heysel frowned, "Did you find any mushroom?" she asked curious while accepting the gift.

"A friend of mine gave it to me, but I think you will need it more than me." the Lord of Cinder explained as he summoned Sif, his replica of Artorias's sword.

Heysel nodded, "May the spirits of past warriors watch over us." she said turning her back to the astorian.

The astorian knight placed his hands over the heavy door, " _I won´t fail this time, I can´t fail!"_ he thought and then began pushing the door open.

Sounds of battle and metal escaped the innards of the mausoleum. Marcus stepped forward and entered the sacred building of the Abyss Watchers. The room was extremely large and long, and certainly big enough to be used as a throne room. However, instead of the grandeur and exuberance of a palace, it was a cold and dark place with a multitude of candles burning on the stone counters on the sides and by the sides of an altar at the at the end of the room. Only a crack on the roof at the center of the room allowed some light to pierce the darkness, but not enough to bathe the entire room. The floor's tiles were old and many had cracked a long time ago, while the roof was curved upwards with a round top.

A ghru grunted something in an urgent tone, and Heysel pointed at a pair of ghru at her sides.

"You two, close the door! They´re here!" the sorceress ordered the acolytes, who obeyed without question.

Marcus didn´t look back, he wasn´t expecting to flee from this conflict. Instead, he summoned an ember from his soul and crushed it with his left hand. The human-like effigy was transformed into embers, which were rapidly absorbed into his body and flowed through his arms and legs like a fiery river. He felt renewed, the sensation akin to absorbing humanity, but it was so much more for him. The knight could feel the embers strengthening his muscles, his equipment getting slightly lighter, and his mind becoming a bit sharper. The astorian's inner flame could be seen on his equipment as embers appeared all around his body in random places. However, for some odd reason the materials were spared of any damage from said fire.

A battle raged on in front of the astorian. A large group of warriors were fighting amongst themselves with large steel swords and curved daggers. All of them wore tall pointed steel helms, the sign of the Abyss Watchers. They used black-dyed leather vests worn over chainmail, their left shoulders were covered by a steel plate that extended to their left chest, giving extra protection to their hearts. The left hands were covered by steel gauntlets while the rights were covered by leather gloves. Their knees were covered by iron kneecaps and the feet protected by leather boots. A piece of cloth that extended from their shirts covered the lower part of their faces while metal masks obstructed the rest, only allowing the eyes to be seen. Large capes flowed behind their backs, the once glorious wine color now faded and tainted by black stains.

All Abyss Watchers wielded the same type of weapons: a large greatsword and a curved dagger. The steel sword slightly surpassed Marcus's claymore in length with a wider blade that would have no trouble cutting through flesh. The handle was black and long, and the cross-guard was slightly pointed upwards at the hand. The blade itself was reinforced with a long piece of iron at the beginning where blade and the cross-guard connected, and possessed a fuller starting from the tip of the iron piece and going through most of the blade. The dagger had a dark brown hilt with only half a guard to protect the hand of the wielder. The black blade was of a medium size and curved with a very sharp tip, making it look like a dragon's claw.

Marcus was able to see about twenty or so Abyss Watchers fighting amongst themselves, but it was impossible to see past the first couple of rows of humans. One of the watchers spotted him and started running at him at full speed, his eyes were as red as blood and his steps quick and relentless. The watcher jumped forward and plunged his curved dagger on the ground as he landed with the greatsword extended forward. Marcus jumped over the blade and was about to announce himself to clear any misunderstanding when another watcher came rushing from behind and jumped with their sword aimed down at the exposed watcher. The red-eyed watcher gasped in pain as greatsword pierced his back and heart, swiftly killing him.

"Who are you?" the second Abyss Watcher asked with a raspy voice as he pulled the sword from the corpse of his fallen comrade.

"I´m Marcus of Astora, undead, I´m here to help." Marcus said holding his sword with both hands. " _Did he just copy my fighting style?!"_ he thought _._

"Help us?" the Abyss Watcher chuckled darkly as he turned his back to the astorian, "

If you wish to be of any help, then kill the ones with red eyes." he told the knight.

Marcus walked past the Watcher, "The Abyss, right? Then we have no time to talk." he charged towards the center of the battle with the greatsword by his side.

The Abyss Watcher remained still, he was expecting irrelevant questions, arguments against him killing his comrade or just fear itself, but instead found quickness and courage in that undead. A smile creeped on his face as he followed the newcomer.

Marcus backstabbed the nearest abyss-consumed Watcher and then pulled the sword back. Another one raised their sword above their head and swung down at the astorian but another Watcher blocked the hit with their greatsword and kicked their comrade away. The friendly Watcher stood back to back with the second Lord of Cinder.

"Be more careful, you left yourself exposed!" the Watcher warned blocking a dagger with his own, his voice livid but wise at the same time.

"Sorry, forgot about that. I´m Marcus of Astora, what´s your name?" the astorian asked swinging his blade sideways.

"Arthur of Farron, current leader of the Legion." the Abyss Watcher said swinging his sword upwards. "Sorry, but we have no time to talk." he slashed a fallen Watcher with his dagger and then stabbed him with the sword.

Marcus saw movement coming from below. He saw a dead Abyss Watcher right by his feet, the warrior slowly stood up like a ghost and then looked at him with blood-red eyes. The astorian lost no time and stabbed him in the chest just as the Watcher moved his arm for a swing. The warrior of Farron fell on the ground on top of his other comrades.

"They´re resurrecting right here?! They´re supposed to go the bonfire!" the second Lord of Cinder exclaimed surprised.

"Just grab one of our swords and kill them, eventually they will stop!" Arthur answered spinning around with his arm and blade extended outwards.

"Is there a new blood here?!" a female voice asked from amidst the crowd.

"Kiara? Are you still there?" Arthur asked looking around.

"Yeah." the voice replied.

Marcus swung his greatsword at a fallen watcher's neck, but despite the fatal injury he wasn´t strong enough to decapitate his target. The corrupt knight fell on top of his fallen comrades and his red eyes faded no long after.

" _I was hoping to prevent their resurrection…Then I have no choice, I have to strike them as fast as I can!"_ the knight thought bending his knees.

The older Lord of Cinder jumped forward and brought down his mighty sword upon his opponent, but his target rolled to the side and slashed him on the chest with their curved dagger. Marcus grunted in pain, but fortunately the mail was highly reinforced and the dagger terrible worn after decades of conflict. The knight of Astora brought his arms back and then delivered a powerful swing at the fallen watcher, which moved their own sword to intercept the attack. However, at the last moment, when the blades were about to connect, the astorian stopped the blade and then spun the other way, striking the watcher from the opposite side.

" _Ouch! Not doing that again today."_ Marcus thought as he endured the pain in his hands.

The astorian saw a red-eyed watcher coming from the direction of the entrance. There was a clear path between them as the rest fought not too far away from their positions. Marcus ran forward with the sword held horizontally by his side. When they got closer both rolled forward and then brought down their swords at each other's head. Marcus's lesser strength was compensated by the facts that he was holding his weapon with both hands, while his opponent was using only one. Embers ignited from metal as the blades collided with each other, but the heirlooms of the wolf knight didn´t stay connected for long, for the wielders exchanged a sequence of attacks in a crouched position as they tried to finish off their opponents.

A sane watcher jumped over Marcus and plunged their blade on the exposed fallen knight, swiftly killing him without any resistance. The astorian quickly got on his feet and was about to thank his savior but the watcher just turned away from him and returned to the main battle at the center of the mausoleum. The Lord Slayer looked down upon the corpse and pondered over the situation.

" _These watchers have been killing each other for the Gods know how long. Arthur said that their weapons could prevent them from reviving, which implies they are effective against the Abyss. But if the corrupt ones are still being resurrected, then the blessing is either too weak or they aren´t stabbing each other fast enough to erase the Abyss before it has time to recover. Dealing a single fatal blow won´t be enough, I have to be sure their Abyss is erased for good. Sif is very strong against the Abyss, even more than the standard blessed weapon, maybe if…"_ Marcus though as he stabbed the corpse on the back. "Watchers! I have a plan, but I need your help!" he warned.

"Oh! Did you hear that? The new blood has a plan! Should we follow it?" Kiara asked from amidst the crowd.

"Spit out!" Arthur ordered.

"Just keep fighting! I will try to prevent their resurrection!" the astorian informed as he searched for the next corpse.

"Consider it done!" Arthur answered as he stabbed and pushed away one of his former friends.

The knight from Astora saw a previously deceased watcher trying to stand up, he cautiously approached them with weapon ready to strike. When the masked warrior opened his eyes, revealing crimson dots, the astorian immediately stabbed him in the chest and then pierced their back twice for good measure. Marcus wasn´t sure about which corpse was taken by the Abyss, so he decided to not give any chances unless the watcher was already awakening. He managed to stab three more corpses when two pairs of glowing eyes raised from the ground behind him. The astorian turned around and bent his knees as he prepared himself for the incoming assault.

The fallen warrior rushed forward and jumped high into the air. He extended his left arm to the side in a clear attempt to do a spinning attack. Marcus tightened the grip over his sword as he kept an eye on the second watcher, who was following not too far behind. The astorian waited for the right moment and then jumped over the sword of the first watcher, he moved his arms back and went for a powerful blow aimed at his second foe. The red-eyed man sidestepped the attack with ease, but was forced to block when the older Lord of Cinder swung his sword upwards. The first watcher prepared a stab from behind but the astorian stepped aside as he allowed the sword to slide upon his foe's blade. The second fallen warrior ended up stabbing the first, giving plenty of time for Marcus to finish off the remaining watcher.

" _And that´s why you need to be careful when fighting with a friend…"_ Marcus thought impaling the first corpse. " _…or fighting a friend."_ he thought stabbing the second.

A third shadow emerged from behind the knight from Astora.

 **(Flashback)**

"Master, I have a question." Heysel asked.

"And what would it be?" the master asked looking upwards.

The man wore a long swaying black robe that hid his legs and arms, his head was covered by a large circular black hat, and his face was adorned by a white mask with a long beak, which had a piece of cloth attached to it.

The duo was currently sat on a wooden table with a pair of candles burning on top of it. The room was made of black bricks with several bookcases placed on the corners and some wooden chests by the left side.

The acolyte of Farron put down her scroll on the table, "If I´m the one writing down the spell, does that make me the master?" she asked.

"Of your own sorcery, yes." the sage replied closing a book and placing it on the table.

"And because you´re the one that will learn the spell, would that make you…my student?" Heysel hesitated.

"From a certain point of view." the crystal sage answered.

"But then I would be your master AND student. How does this make sense?" the acolyte scratched her head confused.

"Have you ever heard the phrase 'Without a master, there is no pupil, but without a pupil, there is no master.'?" the sage questioned his pupil.

"I think I heard it before, but I can´t remember right now." Heysel admitted.

"It is an old saying from the Great Swamp, one many pyromancers adopt. At first one might think it is an obvious truth, a useless teaching from a nomad. But I had discovered its true meaning." the sage told his apprentice.

"And that would be…?" Heysel asked expecting a proper explanation.

"A person or concept will always be the source of inspiration for a sorcerer, and this student will one day become a master. It is a cycle, which repeats itself as knowledge is spread and shared. And sometimes, like our small class, the knowledge runs in a small circle and the roles are blurred. It is a more restrict sharing, but one that has potential nonetheless." Xavier explained.

The acolyte pondered over the answer, "So are you telling me that we´re both masters and students of each other?" she asked.

"Exactly." the crystal master nodded.

 **(End of Flashback)**

The Wolf Knight parried a dagger with his hand and then swung his greatsword to intercept his opponent's sword. The challenger hopped back and then rushed with greatsword extended forward, but the Wolf Knight rolled to the side and swung down his sword at his adversary. Marcus quickly stepped aside and slashed the Wolf Knight in the chest with his dagger, spilling black blood over the floor of the coliseum. Marcus gasped for air, the twin slashes from the wolf warrior were particularly painful, even though the armor held up pretty well. It was like getting bit by two powerful punches in the stomach.

" _He´s...stronger..."_

The azure knight swung his blade sideways and rolled back to get some distance. The dual wielder watched in silence as the greatsword master moved his arm back in a clear preparation for a finishing strike. The Abyss Watcher stood his ground and slowly lifted his sword as he prepared himself for a decisive attack. The greatsword wielder quickly began his attack, covering a large distance in a matter of seconds. Marcus ducked under the swing and then attacked from below, but the wolf knight swung his blade sideways, parrying the attack and sending his opponent to the ground. The astorian sighed relieved that he managed to counterattack the watcher's ascending cut. The corrupted undead's sword was surely strong enough to pierce his mail, unlike the dagger that his foe carried in the left hand, and so he had to be careful with each strike. After noticing movement coming from below, the wolf knight walked towards the still struggling undead and quietly finished him off.

Artorias looked over his shoulder, the undead warrior had returned once more from the realm of the dead, just as one would expect to. It didn´t surprise him at all, because he knew there was a flame burning in his heart, a potent desire to overcome any obstacle, no matter the odds. Marcus wished he didn´t need to kill those watchers, but he had no other choice. They had to fight, for the sake of the world someone had to emerge victorious from that arena, and the azure knight hoped it would be his opponent.

The dual wielder crouched and spun around with his sword extended forward, but the greatsword master blocked the attack by turning down his blade. The Watcher responded by quickly raising and spinning the other way around, only to be intercepted once more. Marcus was caught off guard by the small gesture of the wolf knight, his opponent managed to avoid a surprise attack with minimal movement. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted when he received a kick on the chest, sending him to the ground. The azure knight took the chance to jump forward and end his adversary.

Marcus turned around to face the next Watcher. Pain was just a penalty, resurrection was truth, and death an inevitability. He had died five times at this point, and yet he faced the corrupted knight in front of him without doubt. The astorian could still see the minimal traces of sanity left in the wolf knight, he could sense the struggle behind the abyssal mantle which shrouded him, and this pushed him forward for one more attempt.

The azure knight staggered back, his opponent had managed to strike him over the right shoulder where his armor was weakened. The mail was torn apart as the sharp blade cut deep into his flesh, prompting blood to leak from the wound. Marcus gathered all his strength and trusted his weapon forward, forcing the Watcher to jump back.

Meanwhile Arthur noticed blood flowing through the ground and going to the other side of the room. He finished off one his former friends and looked at the peculiar event that was happening away from the main battle. The wolf knight looked down and grunted in agony as the abyss gathered around him, his breath becoming more irregular and heavy with each second. The Watcher felt the blood of their fallen comrades float through the sky and converge at their location, seeping through their clothes and flesh and giving them an abnormal strength.

Artorias roared in an indomitable fury that overcame his senses. Marcus gulped and summoned a pair of embers from his body. He had seen a similar thing happen in the past when he fought the poor Wolf Knight. The astorian knew he was close to victory, the Abyss would often lash out in rage when threatened, after all, the will to survive was a powerful emotion that humans could tap into during desperate hours. Arthur watched as embers seemed to adorn the newcomer's armor without harming the wearer, while a fallen watcher stood in front of the astorian with dark flames emanating from their body. A comrade watcher stepped forward to intervene in the fight, but Arthur placed his arm in front of him.

"No, focus on the rest." he ordered.

"I don´t think he will handle it." the second watcher protested with a coarse voice.

"I´m watching over him." Arthur replied as he stepped forward. The second watcher hesitated but nodded before turning to return to the diminishing battle behind them.

The Azure Knight crouched with the sword held in front of him, he gave a powerful war cry as he leaped forward towards the undead while doing a somersault with the sword close to his body. Marcus rolled to the side once, twice and one last time before slashing with his dagger, but Artorias rolled back and performed another summersault to slam the sword on the ground, and yet he missed by a small second. Marcus exchanged blows with his adversary, always making sure to never lock his blade with the wolf for more than a second and to never forget their left arm. The astorian managed to land some shallow cuts on the torso and shoulders of his adversary but none were lethal and not even deep enough to stagger the wolf knight.

The dual wielder sidestepped a diagonal cut but had to roll when Artorias spun around and slammed his sword on the ground. Marcus spun around, hitting the wolf knight on the chest and sending him to the ground. The astorian coughed blood, staining the interior of his helm, he crushed one more humanity and quickly rolled to the side before the wolf knight could pierce his back.

Artorias gave quick breaths, he finally managed to restrain himself to some degree after receiving so many attacks. He wondered if the claymore was blessed in some way or form, he saw the undead using miracles in the fight, so he guessed he had asked a smith to enchant his sword in an effort to defeat the abyss within him. The Wolf Knight from Anor Londo grunted as his arm moved back, he couldn't still control his body, only reduce the amount of power behind each swing. He felt tired, more than in his entire life, and yet the Abyss forced his body to fight. Judging by the posture of the brave undead knight, he was probably aiming for a final strike. The wolf knight would do everything he could to give the undead a chance, even if meant his own death. Artorias was forced to slide forward, using the goo on the ground to propel his body. He mustered all his remaining strength to slow down the swing, even if it was a minor effort, even if only by an inch!

The undead knight stood still, he covered his chest with his left hand and looked at the blood leaking from the wound. He suddenly coughed blood and fell to his knees, using the sword to support himself. Marcus hanged the dagger on his belt and turned to face Artorias.

"You fought well." the astorian stated.

The Watcher blinked, his eyes no longer a wicked red, "Thank you, brave undead." he muttered before coughing more blood. "Forgive me, I couldn´t control myself." Artorias said saddened by his failures.

"I know, you were fighting back the entire time." Marcus told the azure knight.

The abyss watcher closed his eyes and after one last breath he collapsed on the ground. Meanwhile the remaining sane watchers eliminated the last of their corrupted comrades, they stood over the corpses with weapons ready to strike if they ever come back to life. Marcus took a sip of his estus flask, he spent the last traces of the embers during the final attack, leaving him weakened once more. He approached the group of watchers and raised his sword on the air to stab the nearest corpse, but Arthur held his hand.

"May I borrow your sword?" Arthur asked.

"Want to do it yourself?" Marcus asked lowering his sword.

The leader of the abyss watchers nodded. The astorian stared at the blueish blade of the greatsword and for a second he thought he saw the image of Sif barking at him. The second lord of cinder bit his lips but then gave the sword to Arthur of Farron. The Abyss Watcher examined the sword with a glint in his eyes, as if facing an old friend after centuries. After a brief moment of admiration he hanged his dagger on the belt and proceeded to stab the corpses on the ground, the rest of the watchers repeating the act not long after. Marcus got nervous when blood began to seep from the bodies and converge at Arthur, but the watcher seemed to ignore the dark reddish liquid permeating his clothes and entering his body.

"The blood, is it okay to absorb it?" Marcus asked reluctant.

"In its current state? Yes, it is." the leader of the legion replied while continuing his task. "Marcus, of Astora." Arthur called after the last corpse was dealt with.

"Yes?" the astorian asked.

"You are a seeker of lords, is that correct?" the wolf knight held the blueish sword once more by his side, this time with both hands.

"Yes, I am." Marcus nodded.

The rest of the watchers exchanged looks, they turned to each other and exchanged handshakes while Arthur and Kiara approached the seeker of lords.

"Uh, how are you all going to sit on the throne?" Marcus asked the leader of the pack.

Behind Arthur the survivors stabbed each other in the chest, bring an end to their lives. Their bodies fell over their deceased allies, painting the ground with fresh blood.

"WHAT?!" was all that the azure knight managed to say. "I almost die to save you all and you just…" he looked at Arthur not believing his eyes.

"Your efforts were not in vain, Marcus of Astora. You aided us in our battle against the Abyss, and proved your worth." Arthur turned to Kiara. "We accept our fate, we knew it from the moment we entered the legion." he raised the sword and plunged it in Kiara's stomach.

Kiara blinked, she held her comrade's shoulder for support. "We´re old blood, Marcus. Old blood dries, rots, and can be stained if left unchecked…" she used her other hand to hold the wound. "…the world needs new blood to survive…to this end old blood must be burned…purified and…." the female Watcher fell to the ground.

Kiara's blood escaped her body and was absorbed by the last Abyss Watcher.

"…renewed." Arthur finished as he turned to Marcus.

Embers ignited on the watcher's cape and leather armor, reviving the once faded fabric with new life.

Marcus crossed his arms and took a deep and long breath. "Okay, if you´re fine with it then it is okay." he nodded.

"You´re taking all of this surprisingly well." the Abyss Watcher stated surprised.

"I believe that a sacrifice should be a choice, not a tool for someone like a necromancer." the azure knight replied. "If there´s an evil person, kill them for being evil, and use their souls for something..." he stopped mid-sentence. "DARKWRAITHS!" he suddenly turned and ran towards the entrance.

Arthur didn´t think twice, he followed the lord seeker and helped him open the great door. They prepared themselves to face their common enemy and fight together as a team. However, they found only ghru corpses spread across the ground alongside the bodies of New Londo's former knights. Some ghru were decapitated, while others had their arms or legs missing. The dark knights on the other hand, had several holes in their armor with many cracks around the areas of impact, it was clear that their old equipment did not held up against the weapons of the swamp dwellers.

"How did they manage to stop them? There are over two dozen darkwraiths." Marcus asked astonished by the sheer number of the invaders.

Arthur stabbed a darkwraith for good measure and inspected the body, "Their equipment is old, it has been some time since we fought the original invaders…" the watcher looked around and saw the large number of ghrus on the ground.

Someone grunted from amidst the sea of bodies, prompting the wolf's disciples to look for the source of the sound. Marcus saw a darkwraith moving and was quick to summon his claymore but relaxed when he noticed it was someone throwing the wraith's body away from themselves. Heysel rolled to the side and regained her footing in a split second, she was anxious as she searched for her enemies, only to meet the figures of two familiar faces behind her back.

"Heysel? Heysel of Farron?" Arthur asked opening the cloth over his mouth.

"This voice…! Arthur?!" the sorceress took off her hood. "You´re…you´re okay!" she fell to her knees as tears began forming on her eyes.

Arthur walked towards the acolyte and kneeled in front of her, he put a hand over her shoulder and gave a faint but sincere smile. "WE, are fine." he stated as he kindled the embers around his body.

Heysel hugged the watcher with all her might, "It has been long, so many years…" she muttered.

Marcus smiled, " _I wish this would happen more often…"_ he thought, his smile fading with dark memories.

"Heysel, you did well today." Arthur complimented pulling the acolyte back.

The sorceress cleaned the tears from her eyes, "I…did not. They…" she looked at the corpses of her allies.

Marcus crouched in front of one of the ghrus and was surprised to see them still breathing. He didn´t know if estus still worked on them so he grabbed the talisman on his belt and chanted the miracle "Heal". A golden magical circle appeared around him, the tip extending outwards as the spell healed the deformed creature with divine magic. The ghru opened their eyes and raised their back from the ground. The beast grunted something to the knight and he assumed it meant "Thank you".

"Nah, I´m already going to the bonfire anyway. Does estus affect them?" he asked the acolyte.

The sorceress and the watcher grabbed their own estus flasks.

"Yes, they do." Heysel nodded as she searched for any survivor.

"Our flask is empty, where is the closest bonfire?" Arthur asked.

"Downhill, inside the keep." the acolyte pointed to an archway not too far away from their position.

The trio proceeded to heal anyone they could with their estus and miracles, but unfortunately they could only save a few of the ghrus. Of the forty beasts that defended the mausoleum, only 9 were still alive by the end of the battle. Once healed all of the creatures bowed in respected to the Watcher, showing their loyalty and dedication even after centuries of abandonment.

Arthur turned towards the astorian, "Are the rest of the lords on their thrones yet?" he asked the lord slayer.

"Just Ludleth of Courland. I still need to find Yhorm, Prince Lothric and Aldrich." Marcus counted his fingers.

"Hm, then it seems you still have a lot of work to do. We advise you to return to the shrine and rest for a while, you will need to be ready for the upcoming fights. As for us, we still need to take care of some things here before coming back." the Watcher looked at the sorceress.

"Will you really come back?" the azure knight crossed his arms, "Or are you going to hunt darkwraiths and such while I search for the rest of the lords?" Marcus questioned suspicious of the Watcher's claims.

"As much we would like to do as you say, we don´t have time for this, too much of a risk. We will come back soon, it won´t take more than a few minutes." the Watcher told his predecessor.

"Okay, I get it, private subjects. Can you give me back the sword" Marcus extended his hand forward.

Arthur glanced at the well-forged blade, "A very faithful replica I must say. Take care of it, it is a good companion against the Abyss." he returned the sword.

"Yes, he is." Marcus replied storing Sif inside his soul.

Arthur raised a brow but remained quiet as he watched the astorian walk to the nearest bonfire. When he was sure that the knight was gone he turned to the acolyte sorceress.

"Are there more of them?" Arthur asked Heysel while gesturing to the creatures around her.

"There are 20 ghrus, the acolytes in front of you, spread through the swamp if they managed to avoid the Darkwraiths as I instructed. I couldn´t gather everyone here and leave the rest unprotected, or we would run the risk of more intruders. There´s also 2 watchdogs covering the main entrance, with some still on duty through the covenant, but I´m afraid I´m the last sorcereress." Heysel reported

"And Xavier?" the leader of the legion asked.

"I searched for months…but couldn´t find him. He didn´t leave any message in his room either." the acolyte informed as her voice faltered at the end.

"Then we suppose it is time." Arthur stated with a hint of happiness in his voice.

"Time? What do you mean?" the sorceress asked.

"We are going to link the First Flame once more, but our duty must continue." Arthur stated looking back at the mausoleum.

"But you´re taking the Wolf's blood with you, how is the Legion supposed to go on without it?" the acolyte questioned her superior.

"It is true that the Legion was created to carry Artorias's legacy and honor his memory with his blood…" the Watcher looked at his hand, "…but if history had taught us anything, it is that many others before us were capable of facing the Abyss." he turned to face the acolytes.

"But we lost so many…" the sorceress muttered.

"We know and we feel your loss. Bury them and pray for them, but live on. Like a wounded wolf you must endure the rain with grace." the Watcher stated looking at the yellow sky.

Heysel lowered her head. She was the one in charge of the last line of defense against the darkwraiths. They won the battle, yes, but at what cost? They were her friends, her family, she didn´t want to lose everyone!

"Heysel, you have done a great job as an acolyte of Farron until now, and you no doubt have the qualities of a watchdog. But it seems you are still unable to fit the role of a follower and ours." Arthur shook his head.

Heysel lowered her head in shame, "You don´t have to remind me about that…" she muttered.

"Do you know why you failed the test?" the Watcher asked.

"I wasn´t strong enough." the acolyte whispered.

"Wrong, it wasn´t your lack of strength while facing the Abyss, on the contrary, you have plenty of it, everyone saw it today." Arthur revealed.

Heysel was shocked, if it wasn´t true strength that she lacked, what was it? It wasn´t intelligence or agility, then what could it be?

"What do I lack? Please, tell me!" Heysel begged while doing a proper bow in front of her superior.

"I can´t reveal this to you. But perhaps Xavier will be able to teach you. If you wish to succeed us, then find him and let him teach you." the leader of the Legion said.

"Then I will…!" the sorceress stopped, she looked down and closed her eyes. "…I will see if the others are fine. I can´t leave yet, there´s much that I need to do." she said clearly disappointed.

Arthur sighed, "If that´s everything then let's return to Firelink Shrine, I wonder if Marcus is already going after the other lords." he wondered.

"Speaking of him, I have a request." Heysel told her superior.

 **(Meanwhile at Firelink Shrine)**

Marcus had summoned Sif and was currently cleaning it with a piece of spare cloth he found in the High Wall of Lothric.

" _How do they know my fighting style? I only mastered it after their teachings and this was at the end of my quest for the gods. Ciaran probably kept my existence a secret, but could that be her way of honoring me? No, I don´t think so. She was already dead by the time I met Sif again. I don´t think that she revealed it either, hm…Could it be…?"_ Marcus thought but stopped when he accidentally rubbed the sharp side of the blade, cutting the fabric in half. The knight sighed as he summoned another piece of cloth and resumed his work.

The knight heard footsteps coming from behind, the Fire Keeper of the shrine was right behind him.

"May I be of any assistance?" the blonde asked respectfully.

"I´m just polishing my greatsword, turns out that cleaning a sharp sword can be quite of a problem. And I think that´s enough." Marcus stored the tissue in his soul alongside the weapon. "They´re taking longer than expected…Now I know how Mildred felt." he muttered storing the sword in his soul.

The knight lay down on the ashes of the shrine and stared at the roof of the shrine, where he could see a small opening at the top where Snuggly had made her nest.

" _I guess this is my new home now, the current Firelink Shrine…they could had at least repaired it."_ the knight thought.

A white mist began to manifest from the bonfire, covering the area around the bonfire. Marcus noticed the fog and immediately crawled away from the bonfire the fastest he could. Two forms stood by the fire's side after the fog dissipated, one almost twice as high as the other. Marcus smiled at the newcomers, he was relieved that the Watcher kept his promise.

"Do my eyes deceive me?" Ludleth exclaimed as he leaned forward to look at the pointy helm of the Abyss Watcher.

Hawkwood was in utter shook, was this some sort of illusion? No, it couldn´t be, right? The cone-shaped helm, the flowing and stained cape, the leather armor and sword. These were the signature equipment of the Abyss Watchers of Farron, a group he…

Marcus stood up and cleaned the ashes from his armor. "Okay, note to self: Don´t stand close to a bonfire if you´re expecting someone to teleport." he said aloud as he looked upwards to face the Watcher. "I was beginning to get worried." the astorian admitted

"We had a little errand to do before coming back..." Arthur explained looking at sorceress by his side. "…but a necessary one." he said looking back at the astorian.

The Fire Keeper of the Shrine was frozen in astonishment. There was no mistake, this new fire she was feeling surely belonged to a Lord of Cinder. Now they were three, three holy flames were present in the shrine, and this brought more hope for the blind maiden. Her duty was one step closer to being complete, and in a way she didn´t expect to be possible. Realizing her lack of respect the keeper of the fire gave a proper bow to the lords in front of her.

"Welcome back, great Abyss Watcher of Farron. It is an honor to meet thee." the Fire Keeper said with all the respect she could muster.

Arthur took a step forward, "Ah, you must be the current Fire Keeper of the shrine. Forgive our lateness, we had a task which couldn´t be postponed. This warrior, Marcus, helped me in my duty. You have to thank him for our presence here today." the wolf knight gestured to the astorian by his side.

"Someone has to do it." the astorian shrugged.

Arthur glanced at Heysel and noticed she was staring at a particular person in the shrine. He followed her gaze and found Hawkwood staring directly at them with a scowl. The air in the shrine suddenly got a colder feeling to it as the Watcher and the acolyte walked towards the crestfallen warrior. The only sound that could be heard were the feet crushing the ash beneath and the burning of the bonfire. Marcus followed the duo, curious at the relationship between the warriors of Farron and the crestfallen undead.

"Of course you would be here." Heysel noted after they stopped right in front of the sitting man.

"Hello, Hawkwood." Arthur said with a cold tone.

"Still remember me? Is my sin too great to forget?" Hawkwood asked annoyed.

"You broke that dogma and still has the courage to say this?!" Heysel asked stepping forward.

Arthur put his arm in front of the sorceress. "Enough, he already paid for his mistakes." the leader of the legion said. "But we have a question for you, Hawkwood. Why remain here if you have no intention of seeking us, or any of the other lords for that matter?" he asked.

Hawkwood looked away, "Is that your way of telling me to move out?" the crestfallen raised from his spot. "Because if that´s a problem, then you have no worry no longer." he said turning towards the bonfire.

The truth dawned upon Marcus like the sun's rays bathing the earth after a long night. Hawkwood wore exactly the same clothes as the Watchers, except for the helm, which he lacked. He didn´t notice before because he only talked with the crestfallen knight once, but after seeing both of them side by side it was clear as day that the clothes were not only similar, but identical.

" _Was Hawkwood part of the Abyss Watchers? but then what is that made him unworthy of the title? Cowardice? Leaving his post? Refusing to kill an abyssal monster or something more selfish?"_ Marcus thought as he saw said man using the bonfire to teleport out of the shrine. The astorian walked towards the Abyss Watcher and looked upwards to face him. "What did he do to leave the Legion?" the older Lord of Cinder asked.

Arthur eyed the acolyte for a moment and the turned to the astorian, "He used a shield." he answered bluntly.

"But Artorias used to have a shield." Marcus argued. " _Although he sacrificed it to protect Sif, and a shield is pretty much useless against hostile humanity."_ he thought.

Heysel decided to step in, "The Legion's technique doesn´t require a shield, doesn´t need a shield." she emphasized the word "need".

"We carry Artorias's torch, but we´re different from him. Besides, we are our own shields." the wolf knight glanced at the acolyte.

Marcus crossed his arms, "I think I get it. But what about me? I use a shield from time to time. In fact, I dual wielded shields a few times." he chuckled as he remembered his past encounters with random hollows.

"You used two shields? But why would you do this?!" Heysel asked not believing such nonsense.

"I broke my sword and a hollow's shield was the closest thing at the time." Marcus explained. " _Turns out that using the inner power of a sword created from a giant drake's tail too many times breaks it. " he thought._

"Why didn´t you get another sword?" Heysel asked.

"I wasn´t the brightest undead around that time." Marcus told the sorceress. "Besides, it is quite fun to use another weapon from time to time. The things you learn which can be applied elsewhere…" he said remembering his past battles. "…but enough of that." the knight waved his hand dismissively.

"You are an interesting warrior, Marcus." the Abyss Watcher stated. "But we don´t condemn you. The use of a shield is not forbidden in the Legion. On the contrary, the acolytes are allowed to use shields and it is part of the follower's standard equipment. Only the watchers themselves are forbidden to use it." the wolf knight replied and then turned around to face the thrones.

Marcus grunted under his breath, "Your throne is that one over there, on the left of the giant throne." he pointed upwards.

"I assume the man on the left throne is Ludleth." the Abyss Watcher stated.

"So he claims." Marcus nodded.

The Abyss Watcher narrowed his eyes but proceeded to climb the stairs to sit on his throne.

"I wonder if there ever was a throne for the Chosen Undead." Heysel stated.

Marcus clenched his fists, "I don´t think so. After all, it wasn´t a tradition at the time, was it?" he turned to the sorceress.

"Hm…and even if they did build one, I wonder who knew his real name." Heysel complemented.

" _Ask Andre, he´s right behind you."_ Marcus thought. "That´s not the priority right now. The Fire must be linked by someone." he said walking towards Irina of Carim. _"Heysel, I really appreciate your respect, but this is getting on my nerves. I would rather not think about it at the moment."_ he thought as he sat in front of the blind former nun. "Hello Irina." he said waving his hand despite the fact that his teacher was blind.

"Ahh Marcus of Astora, welcome back." Irina gave a sincere smile, which warmed the warrior's soul. "Do you wish to hear a tale? You only have to ask, I memorized the miracles, just as you asked." she said with a hint of pride.

Marcus closed his eyes for a moment as he pushed his abyssal thoughts away. "That´s good, I knew you could do it. What miracles did you learn?" he asked.

"I learned three miracles: Force, Med Heal and Tears of Denial." the former nun said.

Marcus crossed his arms, _"I already know Force. Med Heal is pretty obvious but what about Tears of Denial? Does it negate something? I know that Vow of Silence can prevent magic, could this be something similar?"_ he thought. "Tell me about Tears of Denial." he ordered as he pulled a blank scroll and a piece of charcoal from his soul.

Irina nodded, she cleared her throat and began reciting the divine tale. The story focused on the death of a person and their closest friend. The person was about to die, but through the blessing of the gods was allowed to live for a few more minutes. In this meantime they shared tears, remorse and pain. The survivor had told many things they had kept for themselves up that point: regrets, truths and wishes, but the dying comrade assured them it would be okay, that they should continue their path alone. And then with a final goodbye the person perished, leaving his friend alone.

Arthur nodded in approval from his throne, this was a tale worth hearing. Meanwhile Heysel remained in silence, was it just a coincidence? Or a sneaky way of telling her what to do? She wasn´t sure, judging from the dialogue between Marcus and the priestess she assumed the knight just asked to learn a miracle, and as such wouldn´t know the content of the tale. The sorceress approached the knight from behind but remained quiet as he finished his business with the blind woman.

Marcus rolled up his scroll and stored it in his soul, "Thanks a lot. I´m sure this will save my life in the future." he gave a small bow and stood up. "What is it, Heysel?" he asked unsurprised that the sorceress was right behind him.

"Why am I surprised? You managed to detect me before. How do you do it?" the acolyte asked intrigued.

"I always pay attention to my surroundings, even during conversations. It took me a while to master this, but after being ambushed by a bunch of leeches while talking to a friend I began to train my ears and other senses to avoid future ambushes." the knight explained.

"So THAT'S how you detected me." Heysel said surprised.

"Actually, I saw a corpse on the clean swamp and knew there was something or someone nearby. I might have good hearing, but I´m not perfect." Marcus explained. "So, is there something you want to talk about?" he asked the acolyte.

"Your reward. After talking with the Watchers they agreed to lend you the two coals of the Legion. You will be facing many more challenges from now on, and we hope this may help you on your journey." Heysel said.

The sorceress summoned a large grey steel square box on her hand. It had exquisite details on the sides and a bright orange flame burning inside.

"This is the first coal. It was used to forge the legion's swords. You may infuse heavy, sharp and poisonous titanite with this." the acolyte offered the coal to the azure knight.

Marcus took the box and held it with both hands. "I tend to favor both speed and strength, but I guess it might be useful for some friends of mine. Mildred will definitively like a heavy infusion." Marcus said.

Heysel summoned a second box, similar to the previous one but this one containing a bright white flame.

"And this is what my friends call "Sage Flame". It is can be used to create crystal and blessed weapons." Heysel explained.

"Did you say crystal?" Marcus asked worried as he pointed at the coal. " _It can´t be the same ember, I destroyed it right after finding it. Who created this thing?"_ he thought.

"Yes, why? Do you have something against crystal weapons?" Heysel asked, she knew some sorcerers refused to use anything related to swords and shields, but she did remember him using a spell on his own sword so she was left confused by the statement.

"How do I say this…? I don´t have good experience with crystal weapons, some hollows used them to kill me a few times." Marcus told part of the truth. _"And Seath's crystals drain your sanity until you go crazy. I tried burning that place down but turns out that crystals are resistant to fire."_ he thought.

"I see, but even still you shouldn´t ignore their benefits. Crystal weapons get magical properties, which are affected by the user's intelligence and effective against hard scales and metal. Blessed weapons get stronger with the user's faith, prevent the resurrection of skeletons, are more effective against the dark, and may even empower the lighting inside a weapon. This coal's aid to the Legion is incalculable." the sorceress explained.

Marcus tilted his head to the side, "Uh, then shouldn´t you call them magical or enchanted weapons?" Marcus asked. " _It has the same effect of the magical and enchanted infusion, but I still don´t like the crystals. I´m not sure if they are cursed or not."_ he thought.

"No, you need to use a crystal-infused gem, so it is more than fitting to call them crystal weapons. My master had told me that in the past they had managed to create other types of magical titanite, but the ones we currently have are these crystal ones." Heysel explained.

"Hm…" Marcus pondered over the answer, "By the way, who created these gems?" he asked the acolyte.

"The Twin Crystal Sages introduced them to Lothric long ago." the acolyte explained.

"Crystal Sages?" the Lord of Cinder asked curious.

"Xavier and Erik. They´re successors of sage Logan and inheritors of his teachings." Heysel answered.

" _Nonsense! Logan said that he had an apprentice back in his academy but that they were not good enough for him. Griggs hollowed in Sen's Fortress and he did mention I was his last apprentice before going crazy because of the crystals. Or maybe they found his books, DAMN IT! I thought I destroyed them all after he went insane!"_ Marcus thought.

"Marcus?" Heysel called.

The astorian shook his head to the sides, "Sorry, I was just thinking about Logan. From what I know he was very strict with his students and that's the reason why we don´t see a whole school nowadays." the Lord of Cinder explained.

"Yes, it is a shame that this is the case. Thankfully the sages had managed to collect and share his knowledge, or else all would be lost, much like Straid's discoveries." Heysel nodded.

" _So this means the sages found one or more of his books, I must have missed some of them."_ the knight thought in shame. "I will think more about it. Can you give the ember-I mean, coals to Andre?" Marcus pointed at the smith at the other side of the shrine and offered back the first coal.

Heysel took the coal from the undead and looked over her shoulder. "Very well. I suppose you need some rest." Heysel said and began walking towards the bearded undead.

The second Lord of Cinder walked towards the firekeeper of the shrine. "Did I take too long?" he asked.

The blind blonde was taken back by the question, she had been too distracted by her own thoughts to notice the brave knight approaching.

"N-no my sir. Thou accomplished a great feat today…" the Firekeeper hesitated.

"You don´t sound too happy." Marcus remarked.

"I´m truly sorry, forgive my behavior." the maiden bowed. "But few are the cases where a…lord seeker brings a Lord of Cinder back alive." the Firekeeper explained.

"I always try to talk with people, even if they are after my neck." Marcus answered. "By the way, did you decide about your name?" he asked curious.

The Fire Keeper lowered her head as she pondered over the question. He was the first one she met that went this far, could he be the one? Would he really be able to free her? A flame burned ever so brightly in her chest, and this time there was no apparent wind around to blow it away. She made up her mind, she would cling to this fire and keep it from fading away. There were only a few things she could offer to soothe Marcus's soul, and as such she lifted her head and nodded.

"Is that a yes?" Marcus asked just to make sure.

"Yes my sir, if that's thy wish then I will follow it." the maiden nodded again.

The second Lord of Cinder smiled, "But before I do so. I know it can be quite…depressing. But I need to ask. The only thing I remember from my past before becoming undead is my full name, and therefore my homeland. Do you still remember yours?" he asked.

The maiden "looked" down at her hands as she contemplated over the words. Home? Wasn´t home the place where you belong to? The location where one returns after their duty is complete? Or perhaps, it was the place you lived for most of your life? Regardless of the definition, there was only one answer to the question imposed by her lord.

"Firelink Shrine." the blind maiden whispered, a cold wind almost blew away the fire within her soul.

Marcus sighed, "It is okay, I understand…I would have called myself Marcus of Firelink Shrine if I were in the same position. However…" the undead knight used his index finger to lift the delicate face of the maiden. "…like every undead, even if we die again and again, we can begin anew if that´s our desire, Aurora of Firelink Shrine." the knight smirked and then stepped back.

"Au-rora?" the maiden repeated the name, her new name.

The flame within the fire keeper was rekindled, and so new life and vigor were brought to her soul. Her first act of gratitude was to give a deep and proper bow to the lord seeker, the one who gave her a name.

"You are very generous, my sir." Aurora of Firelink Shrine thanked her lord from the brightest pits of her soul.

"Sometimes, when one sees the plight of others, they thank the gods for not being in the same place. As for me, I try to relieve their suffering, because I see myself in their same spot." he told the maiden, he then noticed Heysel approaching from behind Aurora.

"Am I interrupting something?" Heysel asked.

"Well, I was about to check if I have enough souls for Aurora to empower me." Marcus told the acolyte.

"Then I suppose you´re not going to mind me. You see, I gathered a large amount of souls today, and with the successful…retrieval of my friends, I believe you need them more than I." the acolyte extended her hand and summoned a white soul from her palm.

" _Ah, the darkwraiths' souls. She´s right, I was supposed to absorb the Abyss Watcher's souls and get stronger, but since they´re still alive…"_ Marcus looked at Arthur of Farron. "How many souls?" the knight asked the acolyte as he extended his hand.

"20,000 _,_ it should be enough for now." Heysel said as she transferred said souls to the astorian.

" _Actually, if the Lords of Cinder are supposed to fill the role of the Gods I needed to kill, I would need 60,000 souls for each of them. Speaking of them, did they revive with a fraction of their former strength, like I did?"_ Marcus wondered as he absorbed the souls. "Thanks for the help. This should be enough for two improvements." he then turned to Aurora, "I would like to increase my strength and intelligence." he asked the blonde maiden.

Aurora nodded and extended her hand to begin the empowerment process. She repeated the same words as before, but this time there was no doubt in them or hesitation, they came out like the words of an inspired poet eager to show their hard work to the world.

Once Aurora was done, Heysel summoned a large and old brown book from her soul, the tips were crumped and the paper itself was heavily damaged by water.

"What is this?" Marcus pointed at the book in front of him.

"I believe it is a pyromancy tome, I found it in a corpse in my way back to the shrine. Many pages are gone for good, but some are still mostly intact. I remembered you casting a pyromancy against our common enemy, so I thought you might be interested." Heysel explained.

Marcus sighed as he accepted and stored the tome inside his soul. "I was so eager to find them that I didn´t even explore the swamp." he covered his face with his hand. "On the other hand, I think you would try to kill me, again, if I had disturbed a grave, wouldn´t you?" the man lifted his head to see the acolyte's response but her face was covered by shadows. "I will take that as a yes. Speaking of which, I need to see Greirat." the knight turned and went to the side of the shrine.

The astorian found the thief in his usual spot analyzing some arrows and making sure they were still sharp. The smaller man noticed a shadow on the ground and lifted his head to see the owner.

"Oh! I didn´t ex-expect you to return so soon, and who might be the fair lady by your side?" Greirat asked.

Marcus was shaken by the words "fair lady", it reminded him of Queelag's sister, who was infected by a mortal poison and became blind by the blight. However, despite his internal suffering the only external response he gave was to look down at the sitting rat and sigh.

"Are you following me?" the astorian looked over his shoulder to see Heysel right behind him.

"I´m curious to see who this friend of yours is. And to give him a message, if my assumptions are correct." Heysel answered.

"This is Greirat of the Undead Settlement, former thief and current…explorer." Marcus introduced the small human to the sorceress and then gestured at the acolyte. "This is Heysel of Farron, follower of the Legion of Farron." he told the thief.

"I´m not a follower, I´m an acolyte. The followers are, or were, a section of their own, I´m part of the acolytes, which is another section." Heysel stated, matter of fact.

" _Wait, did they actually create a division called 'followers"? Couldn´t they be more specific?"_ Marcus thought. "Sorry for the mistake." he apologized.

"Apologies accepted." the acolyte said turning to the thief, "You´re a scavenger, aren´t you?" she asked pointing her finger at the "rat", poison leaking from her mouth.

"I-I guess you could say that, I´m j-just helping Marcus on his-his journey, I will always ask him for permission, a-after all, he helped me before." Greirat cowered in fear.

Heysel furrowed her brows, "I suppose you placed some rules." she looked at the astorian.

"Yes, don´t attack anyone in the shrine or any sane person outside as well. And I guess he will ask me when and where to explore, right Greirat?" Marcus asked the former prisoner, who nodded hastily. "I´m not sending him to Farron, if you´re thinking about it." he told his ally.

"Good, because I would know about it, and you would need to find someone else to do the task." the acolyte of Farron nodded in approval.

Marcus and Greirat sweated at the implication and the astorian looked at the "explorer", "I guess you should learn something, anything, in the future, Greirat. I don´t know what, farming, tailoring,…" he suggested trying to ease the tension.

The thief gulped, "I-I´m really starting to con-consider it." he looked at his wares.

The Lord of Cinder rubbed his chin, "Now that I´m thinking about it, I haven´t seem what you got from the Undead Settlement." he said.

The rat of Firelink Shrine glanced at the acolyte, who looked more like a wolf eyeing a sheep. He wasn´t sure if it was safe to even touch his wares, judging by the woman's attitude.

"Heysel." Marcus called out.

"I want to look at his wares too." the acolyte said eyeing the so called "explorer" with disdain.

"I guess you have no choice." the astorian told the thief.

The thief trembled, but gained a minor amount of relief due to the knight's presence, after all he stopped Mildred and the others from killing him before. He would certainly restrain this woman too, wouldn´t he? Greirat opened the sacks containing the wares from his last expedition and exposed them for the duo to inspected.

"Divine Blessing, ember, estoc…" the astorian stated as he went through the wares.

"How much are these lighting urns?" Heysel asked grabbing an urn crackling with golden lighting.

"700 souls each. B-but for you I make it 600." Greirat said uneasy when the woman frowned.

"Too expensive…Do you have any normal bolts?" Heysel asked grabbing a heavy bolt and pointing the tip at the vendor.

"Y-yes, of course. I have 20 of them, 25 souls each." the thief answered.

"I´m buying all of them." the acolyte said.

"O-of course." the vendor said opening another sack and retrieving the projectiles.

Meanwhile Marcus inspect a peculiar silver curved sword. It was rather large for its type with a long handle with a curved double guard. What caught the warrior's attention, however, was the state of the blade itself. The large blade seemed to be corroded, with several holes through it, making the sword brittle and weak. On top of this peculiarity the knight also felt something off about the sword. It was very faint, but it was definitively there, a familiar feeling he was sure he should know but couldn´t remember at the moment.

Heysel stored the bolts inside her soul and looked towards the knight. "What is that thing?" she asked leaning closer.

"Seems to have corroded with time, maybe Andre can fix it." Marcus said turning the blade around.

"Hand it to me." the acolyte extended her hand.

"Sure, why not?" the knight gave the sword to the sorceress.

Heysel brought the blade close to her face as she squinted her eyes at the frail metal. The sorceress moved the blade away and looked at the vendor. "Do you have anything that match this sword? Armor? Shield perhaps?" she asked.

"The shield over there." the thief pointed at a particular triangular shield on the left.

Marcus grabbed the shield and handed it over to Heysel. The equipment was triangular and slender in appearance. It was made of a blueish grey metal and the steel seemed to emit a thinly cold air, which surrounded the entire surface of the shield. The surface was significantly corroded on the top, as if a pyromancer had casted a corroding mist and the owner had used it to block the attack.

"Where did you find this?" Heysel asked the vendor.

"Thrown away in a pile of sacks inside a house on the west side of the town. I-I think the owner tried to hide it before leaving." Greirat answered.

"Interesting. I´m taking them both." the acolyte smiled at the thief.

"Huh." the rat hesitated. "These are ra-rather unique weapons. How about…7,000 souls?" he suggested afraid of the acolyte.

"Hm…" the sorceress rubbed her chin, "Oh, I´m afraid I´m a bit short of souls at the moment, I had to lend most of them to my friend Marcus, you see. But I´m REALLY interested in these two pieces. Could you make a special offer?" she asked still keeping a smile on her face.

Marcus nodded silently and quietly to the vendor. " _Make it free, Greirat. She won´t let you keep them, at all."_ he thought.

Greirat looked from the knight to the sorceress, "I don´t think anyone else will be interested in these two, a-and I´m sure they require some repair. Huh-Huh, to be honest, fixing them would be quite of a trouble. Y-you can keep them, for free, Yes! For free." the thief repeated.

"Splendid! You´re very generous, Greirat." the acolyte smiled kindly and then took both shield and sword, although Marcus knew that the smile was a farce.

"It seems your trip wasn´t in vain at the end of the day, Greirat." the Lord of Cinder said trying to ease the tension.

"Marcus, we need to talk." Heysel told the knight as she stood up with the equipment in hand.

"Meet me in the upper floor." Marcus ordered and the acolyte nodded before leaving. The knight turned to the thief and summoned a couple of souls on his hand. "1,000 souls, for the trouble of getting the weapons." he said.

"You don´t have to, acquiring the wares is profit enough, really. And my life is more valuable than those two pieces." the thief waved his hand dismissively.

"Hm, if you say so." the knight said and then stored the souls again. "I will be going then, I will warn you if I find an area worth exploring." he said turning away from the scavenger.

The knight from Astora met the acolyte in the area in front of the tower leading to Snuggly's nest, where the strange humanoid tree stood still and lifeless. The sorceress crouched in front of the tree and collected a giant seed from the ground for a later use.

"This degradation isn´t the result of time. The pattern of corrosion isn´t consistent with the corrosive effect of water and wind" the sorceress explained. "And I feel remnants of a dark power inside it." she whispered as she turned to face the knight

"What kind of dark power are you talking about?" Marcus asked curious.

The acolyte looked around to make sure they weren´t being heard by anyone else. "This corrosion, I have seen it before. It's the Abyss, and of a specific kind I´m afraid. The Deep." Heysel revealed.

"The Deep?" Marcus repeated, "I think I have heard the name before, but I can´t quite remember." he mumbled.

"The Deep is nothing more, nothing less than stagnant humanity. Its followers say that humanity's dregs are the heaviest thing in the soul, and that these fall to the deepest depths of the world to form a sea of darkness. In this sea exist a myriad of flesh-eating bugs and maggots who can eat even steel, not mentioning the usual beasts we find in the Abyss. I suppose the sword and shield were exposed to the Deep in some shape or form and the maggots ate away the steel." the acolyte of Farron explained to the lord seeker.

"And where is the closest place related to the Deep?" Marcus asked worried. _"It is like another Abyss, different in some way, but a bad thing nonetheless."_ he thought.

Heysel was caught by surprise, her eyes widened for a moment before they returned to normal. "That…that would be the Cathedral of the Deep, but they don´t have this kind of equipment." the acolyte said as she looked away.

Marcus crossed his arms as he organized his thoughts. "Deep, deep, Cathedral of the Deep, deep cathedral, church, sacrifice, evil, cannibal, ALDRICH!" the knight looked back at the shrine.

Heysel stepped back, "Yes, that placed used to be the home of Saint Aldrich, but now he´s more of an abyssal monster than a human. He has been corrupted by the Deep and needs to be killed." the sorceress said.

"Oh no…" Marcus whispered and then ran back to the shrine.

The knight rushed the fastest he could to the central area of the temple. He found Aurora right by the bonfire's side and approached her with haste.

"Aurora, where is Anri and Horace?!" he asked quickly.

"My sir!" the maiden said surprised by the sudden question, "T-they have left about an hour ago, from what I could hear from their conversation they were going after Saint Aldrich." the fire keeper informed.

"And what about Mildred?!" the knight asked.

"They left without her, miss Mildred woke up minutes after their departure and went after them, but they haven´t returned ever since." the maiden replied.

The knight rushed to the bonfire but stopped when he heard footsteps from behind. Heysel had caught up with him, her feet covered by ash after a sudden jump.

"I know how you feel, but you can´t just rush into the Cathedral of the Deep. Also, do you even know where it is?!" the sorceress asked.

"Go to the bonfire right before the swamp and then to the left." Marcus said looking back at the acolyte.

"It isn´t that simple. You have to pass through the the acolytes' keep and then travel through a graveyard before reaching the cathedral. Besides, you will have to prepare yourself for the maggots and the dark!" Yellow Wolf warned.

A memory emerged from the corner of the knight's memory, and with it visions of ghosts, a flooded city and four fallen kings. Marcus blinked and then removed his hand from the bonfire's sword.

 **(Flashback)**

Marcus had reached the end of a long staircase leading to an Abyss of darkness. He tried to see further with his torch, but there was no indication of floor or platform. With no choice left the knight jumped into the Abyss, only to be consumed by the darkness a few moments later.

 **(End of the Flashback)**

The astorian turned around to face the woman from Farron. He gave a long and deep sigh and flexed his hands to get a hold of himself.

"Fine, what will I need?" the knight asked in a more controlled tone, although he was rubbing his thumb and index finger on each other.

Heysel approached and retrieved a small rectangular box from one of her pockets. She opened the wooden box to reveal small dark purple pellets as big as grapes.

"These pellets are made from crushed dark bugs, each give a significant boost against the dark for a whole minute. Do you have any bags or sacks to spare?" the acolyte asked.

Marcus looked at his belts, he opened one of the pockets and confirmed it was empty. "How many can I take?" he asked, there were 6 of them in the box but he thought that the sorceress would need some for herself.

"Take 4." the sorceress said picking four pellets and handing them to the knight.

"What about the maggots?" the astorian asked storing the pellets.

"Fire is effective against the bigger maggots, even the flame of a torch is enough to make them shake in pain. As for the tiny ones the heat of a torch is enough to keep them away from you, you don´t need to set yourself on fire." Heysel detailed.

"Why would I set myself on fire?" Marcus replied as he searched his soul for a specific ring.

The astorian retrieved a particular ring from his collection. It was a copper ring with a square red jewel on the top. Usually the warrior wouldn´t use rings in his journeys, he believed that he had to improve his abilities through the hard way and not by using an artificial mean like a blessed ring or potion. Of course, he would give no second thoughts if he had to fight the Abyss or save someone from danger. The ring he retrieved was called "Bloodite Ring", an enchanted ring capable of severely increasing the wearer's ability to resist bleeding.

"You would be surprised with how far people go to achieve their goals." Heyel stated.

"No, I wouldn´t. Otherwise the Abyss wouldn´t exist." the knight responded.

The second Lord of Cinder searched his soul for another item. This time he retrieved a medium-sized metal kite shield. The surface was adorned by the painting of two sets of vines that ran from the bottom to the top and ended up bending to the sides to form a spiral at the end. Marcus had dubbed this shield, "Grass Crest Shield", for the peculiar design. It was a shield he found early on his journey, and one he would use on many occasions due to its strange ability to increase one's stamina recover. He also summoned another ring, this one had a crest on top of it in the shape of a green flower with two layers of petals, the second one being slightly smaller than the first. The ring had the same effect, although twice as strong.

"I assume the rings have special effects." the sorceress deduced.

"The red one increases my resistance to bleeding and the green one my stamina regeneration. The shield does the same thing as the green ring, but on a smaller scale." Marcus answered passing the strings of the shield over his shoulder to put it on his back.

"The same effects of the green blossom…" Heysel rubbed her chin.

"Thinking about using a shield?" Marcus teased as he summoned the Gold Tracer and put it on his belt.

Heysel shook her head in denial, "Never, I´m just intrigued." she said.

The second lord of cinder summoned a stick wrapped in cloth from his soul and held it on his left hand. "Anything else?" he asked.

"I don´t think so. Meet me at the bonfire before the swamp, I will show you the path to the Cathedral." the sorceress said approaching the bonfire.

Marcus and Heysel placed their hands over the bonfire, the fire produced a yellow mist which covered and engulfed both undead, leaving no traces of their existence behind. Arthur of Farron scanned the area for anything suspicious and saw a cloaked figure approaching the stairs of the shrine. He waited for the person to exit the temple before carefully standing up from his throne to prevent any undesired noise. He had to know what the person was up to, and to confirm if their intentions were good or not. It was part of his duty as an Abyss Watcher of Farron, after all.

 **Notes**

 **I know, it took me almost three months to update. But it was mostly because I had many important things to do in my personal life. I still have other things to do, but they are more manageable now.**

 **The chapter's name, "Soul Echoes", is a reference to Bloodborne's blood echoes. I mixed the battle between Marcus x Artorias and Marcus x Abyss Watchers to demonstrate how similar they are while noting the small differences. Fighting style-wise Marcus was basically "Artorias" during his fight with the Abyss Watchers, while watchers themselves had a similar, but more refined, fighting style that Marcus used against the Wolf Knight of Anor Londo. If you got confused during the fight, then I achieved my goal. The point is that the two battles had similar exchanges, with only the roles being reversed. Hence why sometimes I describe that Marcus managed to land a hit, only to write a second later that he felt a lot of pain in his chest.**

 **The Pupil-Master saying is taken straight from the Great Swamp Pyromancy tome, which states "Without a master, there is no pupil, but without a pupil, there is also no master".**

 **The reason why Arthur refers to himself as "us" after receiving the rest of Artorias's blood is because he essentially became an avatar. The Soul of the Blood of the Wolf states that "The blood was spread amongst the Abyss Watchers, and their souls are one with the soul of the wolf blood master."**

 **I´m sure that some of you were expecting a longer interaction between Hawkwood and the Abyss Watchers. At first I was thinking about having a discussion between them, but then I realized that he probably already had that right after abandoning the Legion (if he didn´t flee without them knowing, but that is unlikely in my opinion).**

 **Marcus is very curious regarding weapons and equipment, so he tested the Drake sword's special ability to the point of breaking the weapon. I´m sure this happened with some players since there isn´t a durability bar on the screen in DS1, unlike later games.**

 **I´m sure some players dual wielded shields at some point in their playthrough for testing or just because of sheer boredom.**

 **In Dark Souls 1 you can meet Siegmeyer in the depths of Blighttown, but there are some leeches in the area around him.**

 **Aurora means "dawn". So the Fire keeper name means "Dawn of Firelink Shrine". I was inspired by Dusk of Oolacile's name and I thought it would fit her role and Marcus's tendency of associating people and things with their attributes.**

 **I think it is very clear that Heysel hates grave robbers. After all, the purpose of the Watchdogs of Farron is to repel invaders and guard the resting place of old warriors.**

 **Naturally Marcus is cautious of the Sage Coal, and it is be fair to assume that many veteran players got confused by the name of the infusion. The crystal infusions are very different between the two games.**

 **Heysel omitted the Sage Coal's ability to make deep infusions for obvious reasons. Andre may not see many problems with it, since deep infusions have no scaling and therefore considered "under control" (not affected by the wielder's own darkness), but I´m sure an acolyte of Farron would avoid the infusion at any cost.**

 **Erik is a reference to Magneto's name in the X-men comics. So we have Xavier, the sage who joined Farron's Legion, and Erik, who remained in Lothric.**

 **Heysel's advice of not needing to set oneself on fire is a reference to the Immolation pyromancy from Dark Souls 2, which allows the user to set themselves on fire to deal constant damage to enemies.**


End file.
